LIBRARY 

(Theological  JSeminanL 

PRINCETON.  N.^l 

xt  r'  Division 

No.  Case, - ~ - - - - 

No.  Shelf,  _ -c g _ _ _ -l- ______ 

No.  Book _ - 


From  the  Rev.  W.  B.  SPRAGUE,  D.D.  Sept.  1839. 

A  \*V  vQ-  vfV  »fl/  vlV  vOx  vT>  v(V  x(V  \.(V  sCV  vfU  v(V  vQ/  v/V 


/Sprague  Collection.  Vol .  454 


V  ■  '> 


. 


•* 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2017  with  funding  from 
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https://archive.org/details/doctrineofjustifOOmerc 


T  M  & 


°L 

D  OCTRINE 

O  F 

JUSTIFICATION, 

BY  T  HE 

RIGHTEOUSNESS  of  CHRIST* 

Stated  and  Maintained  in  an 

EXTRACT 

7. 

From  the  Reverend  John  Gill,  D.  D. 


By  SILAS  V  MERCER, 

Author  of  Tyranny  Exposed. 

As  by  one  man's  difobedience  many  were  made  fm- 
ners  ;  fo  by  the  obedience  of  one ,  /hall  many  be 
made  righteous.  Rom.  v.  19. 


CHARLESTON: 

* 

Printed  by  Markland-&  MHver,'  No.  47,  Bay. 

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O.t 


•''W 


ADVERTISEMENT. 


WHEREAS  a  number  of  perfons  are  engaged, 
both  from  the  pulpit  and  prefs ,  cgainjt  the 
daflrine  of  juftif cation,  by  the  imputation  of 
Chri/t’s  righteoufnefs ,  endeavouring ,  if  pojfible ,  to 
erafe  it  prom  the  Chriflian  faith ,  by  declaring  it 
unfcriptural,  dangerous,  often  fatal,  and  that  it 
has  done  immenfe  hurt ;  and  in  order  to  frighten 
por  fouls  from  embracing  it,  have  dreffed  it  in  the 
moft  fatle  colour,  by  fuch  epithets  as  imputed  non- 
feufe,  imputed  damnation,  &c.  And  as  I  be¬ 
lieve  it  to  be  effentiul  to  Jalvation,  1  think  I  never 
knew  a  time  in  which  it  was  more  nectffary  to 
publifh  a  piece  on  JuJlification. 

And  as  Dr.  Gill,  in  my  judgment,  has  wrote 
an  unanf iter  able  treatife  upon  the  fubjedt,  I  think 
proper  to  pub  lift  this  extradl,  in  which  this  doc¬ 
trine  is  not  only  advanced ;  but  defended  againji 
the  Armenians  and  Neoammians  in  a  moft  judi¬ 
cious  and  mafter  ly  manner. 

It  is  therefore  fubmitted  to  the  ferious  confi dera¬ 
tion  of  all  thofe  who  are  fe eking  after  truth  ;  by 
their  fouls  well  wijher,  and  unworthy  fervant  in 
the  go/pel  of  Chri/t,  S.  M. 

Georgia,  Wilkes  County,  Harden’s 
Creek,  lytb  of  May,  1792.  $ 


•'*  - 


I 


the 


doctrine 
o  T 

JUSTIFICATION,  &c. 

Acts  xiii.  39. 

And  by  him  all  that  bcleve  are  juftified  from  att 
things,  from  ’which  ye  could  not  be  juftified  by 
the  lav)  of  Mofes. 

THIS,  and  the  preceding  vcrfe,  appear  at 
firft  view,  to  contain  thofe  two  great  doc- 
trines  of  the  gofpel,  pardon  of  fin,  and  juftj- 
fication  from  it ;  the  former  of  which  I  have 
largely  infilled  on,  from  the  foregoing  words, 
and  (hall  now  confider  the  latter  which  I  pro- 
pofe  to  do  in  the  following  method.  ^ 

I.  I  (hall  explain  the  a£t  of  juftificauon,  and 
fhew  what  it  is,  and  what  it  is  not. 

II,  Enquire  into  the  author  of  it,  or  who  it  is 

that  iuftifies.  .  ,  ,  .  • 

III.  Shew  the  matter  of  it,  or  what  that  is, 
for  the  fake  of  which  any  are  juftified. 

IV.  Say  fomething  concerning  the  form  ot  it, 
which  is  by  imputation  of  righteoulneis. 

V.  Confider  the  date  of  jollification. 

VI.  Point  out  the  objeds  thereof,  cf  who  they 
are  that  are  juftified.  ^ 


6  The  DOCTRINE  of 

VII.  Mention  the  feveral  effects,  which  follow.! 
upon  it,  or  aieclofely  connected  with  it. 

VIII.  And  I  j/ly,  give  fome  account  of  the  I 
feveral  properties  of  it. 

I.  1  ffiall  explain  the  a£t  of  juflification,  and  ( 
fliew  both  what  it  is  not,  and  what  it  is.  And,  < 
i.  Stri&ly,  and  properly  fpeaking,  it  is  not  . 
the  pardon  of  iin.  Thefe  two  acts  of  divine  ] 
grace  are  in  ftrift  connection  with  each  other, 
and  are  not  to  be  feparated  ;  that  is  to  fiy,  I 
where  the  one  is,  the  other  alfo  is ;  yet,  I 
think,  they  may  be  diflinguifhed.  I  readily 
allow,  that  there  is  a  very  great  agreement  be¬ 
tween  juftification  and  pardon,  in  their  efficient, 
impullive,  and  procuring  caufes,  in  their  ob- 
jetts,  or  fubjedts,  in  their  commencement  and  | 
manner  of  completion  :  The  fame  God,  that 
pardons  the  fins  of  his  people,  j aftiHes  them, 
or  accounts  them  righteous ;  the  lame  grace 
which  maved  him  to  the  one,  moved  him  to  the 
other;  as  the  blood  of  Chriit  was  Hied  for  the 
remiffion  of  fins,  lo  by  it  are  we  jollified  ;  all 
who  are  jollified,  are  pardoned ;  and  all  who 
are  pardoned  are  juftified,  and  that  at  one  and 
the  fame  tune  ;  both  thefe  acts  are  fimihed  at 
once,  jimul  o  fem:l}  and  are  not  carried  on  in  a 
gradual  and  progreffive  way.  But  all  this  does 
not  prove  them  to  be  one  and  the  fame,  for1 
though  they  agree  in  thefe  things,  in  others 
they  differ  ;(for  jullification  is  a  pronouncing  a 
perfon  righteous  according  to  law,  as  though  he 
had  never  finned  ;  not  lo  pardon  :  'Tis  one 
thing  for  a  man  to  be  tried  by  law,  call,  and 
condemned,  and  then  receive  the  king’s  pardon  ; 

and 


7 


JUSTIFICATION. 

ind  another  thing  to  be  tried  by  the  law,  and, 
Dy  it,  to  be  found  and  declared  righteous,  as 
:  though  he  had  not  tinned  againftit.J  Moreover, 
:hough  pardon  takes  away  fin,  ana  therefore  is 
?xpreffed  (a)  by  God’s  carting  of  it  behind  his 
aa;  k,  and  into  the  depths  of  the  fea,  and  by  a 
removal  of  it  from  his  people,  u  as  far  as  the 
caft  is  front  the  weft  yet  it  does  not  give  a 
righteoufnefs  as  juftification  does  :  Pardon  of 
in,  indeed,  takes  away  our  filthy  garments, 
tut  it  is  juftification  that  clothes  us  with  change 
if  raiment-  Belides,  more  is  required;  and 
ivas  given  for  our  juftification,  than  for  otir  par- 
ion;  the  blood  of  Chrift  wasfrfficient  to  procure 
pardon;  but,  befides,  his  buffering  of  death, 
the  holinefs  of  his  nature,  and  the  perfect  obe¬ 
dience  of  his  life,  muft  be  imputed  for  ji  ftifica- 
don.  Again,  though  pardon  frees  from  punifh- 
ment,  yet,  ftriftly,  and  properly  {peeking,  it 
does  not  give  a  title  to  eternal  life;  that  juftifi¬ 
cation  properly  gives,  and  is  one  good  reafon 
why  the  apoftle  (b)  calls  it  “  Juftification  cf 
life.”  Oncemore,  juftification  p;  fled  on  Chrift, 
is  our  head  and  reprefentative,  when  he  rofe 
rom  the  dead,  but  not  pardon.  We  may  truly 
'ay,  that  Chrift  was  juftified,  becaufe  the  ferip- 
ures  (c)  fay  fo,  but  we  cannot  fay  that  he  was 
jardoned;  fhould  we,  it  would  found  very  harfh 
n  our  ears,  as  cvell  as  be,  I  think,  a  very  un¬ 
warrantable  expreffion ;  therefore,  parden  and 
juftification  may  be  confidered  as  two  d  ftindl 
things.  In  fine,  if  thefe  two  are  one  and  the 

fame, 

( a )  Ifai.  xxxviii.  17,  Micah  vii.  20.  Pfal-  ciii.  13. 
{b)  Rom.  V.  18,  (c)  1  Tim.  iii.  16 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


8 

fame,  the  apoftle  mull  be  guilty  of  tautology  ii; 
our  text,  where  he  fpeaks  ddtin&ly  of  juftifica  * 
tion,  having  fully  expreffed  forgivenefs  of  finii  c 
the  preceding  vetfe.  !l 

2.  juftification  is  not  a  teaching,  ''r  an  inftru&j  * 
ing  of  men  in  the  way  and  method  how  they  an 
or  may  be  juilified.  When  Chrill,  as  God’  [ 
righteous  fervant,  is  faid  (a)  to  “  j ufkify  many 
by  his  knowledge  the  meaning  is,  not  that 
he,  by  nis  knowledge,  or  doftrine,  ihould  only 
teach  men  how  they  might  be  juftified,  or  what  1 
is  God’s  way  and  method  of  juftifying  finners  ;  ! 
for  this  is  no  more  than  what  the  minifters  of  the 
gofpel  do,  who  are  faid  to  “  turn  many  toi 
righteoufnefs,”  or,  as  it  is  in  the  original  text, 
to  ( b )  jultify  many  ;  which  they  do,  by  preach-' 
ing  th£  gofpel,  wherein  “  the  righteoufnefs  of 
God  is  revealed,  Tom  faith  to  faith  ;”  and, 
which,  being  bltffed  and  owned  by  the  fpirit  of 
God,  is  “  the  ininiitration  of  righteoufnefs”  to 
many  :  But  the'  meaning  is,  that  he  fhould  give 
to  many  a  fpi>  itual  knowledge  of  himfelf,  which, 
in  other  words,  is  faith  ;  by  which  they  fhouldi 
have  a  comfortable  apprehenfion  of  their  judi¬ 
cation  by  his  righteoufnefs. 

3.  [uftification  ii  not  an  infufion  of  righte- 
oufnels  into  perfons  ;  to  juilify,  is  not  to  make 
men  holy  and  righteous,  who  are  unholy  and 
unrighteous,  by  producing  any  phvfical  or  real 
change  in  them;  for  this  is  to  confound  jollifi¬ 
cation  and  lan&'fication  together,  which  are 
very  manileitiy  dnhn<d ;  the  one  being  a  work 

of 


(a)  Ifai.  iiii.  11. 


(b)  Dan.  xii.  3. 


JUSTIFICATION.  9 

t)f  grace  in  us;  the  other  an  aft  of  grace 
•wards  us  ;  the  one  is  carried  on  by  deg  ees;  lie 
other  is  coinpleat,  a.  d  finifhed  at  once.  Befidts, 
jollification  is  ne%er  ufe'd  in  fcripture  (a)  in  a 
phyfical,  but  in  a  Forenfic  fenfe  ;  and  Hands 
oppofid,  not  to  a  {late  of  irSripurity >  or  unholi* 
htfis,  but  to  a  Hate  of  condemnation. 

4.  Jollification  is  an  aft  ot  God’s  free  grace* 
whereby  he  clears  his  people  from  fin,  difeharges 
them  from  condemnation,  and  reckons  and  ac¬ 
counts  them  righteous  for  the  fake  of  ChriH’s 
righteoufnefs,  which  he  has  accepted  of,  and 
imputes  unto  them.  Some  very  excellent  di¬ 
vines  have  diflinguifhed  juflificatic  n  into  aftive 
and  paffive.  Aftive  juflification  is  God’s  aft,  it 
is  God  that  jufiifies  ;  paffive  juflification  is  the 
'fame  aft,  terminating  on  the  confidence  of  the 
believer;  aftive  juflification  is  flriftly  and  pro¬ 
perly  juflification;  paffive  juflification  is  impro¬ 
perly  •  fio;  £aftive  juflification  precedes  faith, 
paffive  juflification  is  by  fai  h. 

Again,  juilification  may  be  confidered  either 
in  foro  Dei,  and  fo  it  is  an  eternal,,  immanent 
aft  in  God  5  or  in  foro  confient'ux,  and  fo  it  is 
declarative  to  and  upon  the  confcience  of  the 
believer;  or  in  foro  mundtj  and  fo  it  will  be 
notified  to  men  and  angels  at  the  general  judge¬ 
ment^) 

Again,  let  it  be  farther  obfierved,  that  the 
fcfiptures  fometimes  fpeak  of  the  j  ifl  fication  of 
God’s  peo  le,  either  of  their  perfbns  or  faith, 
or  cauie,  before  men,  and  then  it  is  afcribed  to 
B  their  , 

[a)  See  Deut.  xxv.  1.  Prov.  xvii.  15.  Ifai.  v.  23* 
Rom.  v.  16.  18.  and  viii.  33.  340 


i®  The  DOCTRINE  of 

their  works ;  and  at  other  times,  of  their  perfons 
before  God,  which  is  faid  to  be  without  works  ;  j 
it  is  now,  not  of  the  former,  but  of  the  latter 
our  texc  fpeaks,  and  which  I  am  tonfidering ; 
and  fhall  now  proceed, 

II.  To  enquire  into  the  author,  or  efficient 
eaufe  of  juftification,  who  is  the  great  God  of 
heaven  and  earth  :  It  is  God  that  juftifies  (a)’”  [ 
which  ms y  well  be  wondered  at,  when  ,tis  con- 
fidered  that  he  is  the  fupreme  judge  of  all,  who 
will  do  right ;  that  his  law  is  the  rule  by  which 
he  adts  in  this  affair  ;  that  this  law  is  broken  by  I 
the  fin  of  man ;  that  fin.  Which  is  a  breach  of 
the  law,  is  fpecially  committed  againft  him,  and 
is  hateful  unto  him  ;  that  he  is  a  God  that  will 
not  admit  of  an  imperfedt  righteoufnefs,  in  the 
room  of  a  perfedf  one  ;  and  that  he  has  power  to 
condemn,  and  reafon  fuffkient  to  do  it ;  when,  I 
fay,  thefe  things  are  confidered,  ,tis  amazing 
that  this  God  fhould  juftify.  For  the  farther 
illuftration  of  this  head,  I  fhall  endeavour  to  !i 
fhew  the  concern  that  all  the  three  perfons,  fa-  | 
ther,  fon,  and  fpirit,  have  in  the  juftification  of  f 
the  eledt. 

i.  God  the  fa' her  is  the  contriver  of  the 
fcheme  and  method  of  our  juftification }  he 
was  (bj  in  Chrift,  reconciling  the  world  to  him- 
felf,  not  imputing  their  trefpaffes he  drew 
the  model  and  platform  of  it,  which  is  No'!us 
Deo  vindice  dignus.  It  would  have  remained 
a  puzzlii  g  queftion  to  men  and  angels,  “  How 
fhould  man  be  juftified  by  Godf”  had  not  hi* 

grace 

(fl)  Rom.  viii.  34.  (£}  Cor.  v.  19, 


II 


JUSTIFICATION. 

grace  employed  his  wifdom  to  find  out  a  ranfom, 
whereby  he  has  delivered  his  peop'e  from  goi»  g 
down  to  the  pit ;  which  ranfom  is  no  other  than 
his  own  fon,  whom  he  fent,  in  the  fulnefs  of 
time,  to  execute  the  fcheme  he  had  fo  wifely 
formed  in  his  eternal  mind;  which  he  did  by 
finifhing  tranfgreflion,  making  an  end  of  fin, 
making  reconciliation  for  iniquity,  and  bringing 
in  an  everlafting  righteoufnefs ;  which  righte- 
oufnefs,  being  wrought  out  by  Chrjft,  God  was 
well-pleafed  with,  becaufe,  hereby  his  law  was 
magnified  and  made  honorable;  and  having  gra- 
cioufly  accepted  of  it,  he  imputes  it  freely  to  all 
hi  ■  people,  and  reckons  them;  righteous  on  the 
account  of  it. 

2.  God  the  Son,  as  God,  is  the  co-efficient 
caiife  of  it,  with  his  father.  As  he  has  equal 
power  with  him  to  forgive  fin,  he  has  alfo  to 
acquit,  difcharge,  and  juftify  from  it.  As  me¬ 
diator,  he  is  the  head  and  reprefentative,  “  in 
whom  all  the  feed  of  lfrael  are  juftified  as 
fuch,  he  has  wrought  out  a  righteoufnefs,  an- 
fwerable  to  the  demands  of  the  law,  by  which 
they  are  juftified ;  and  is  the  author  and  finilher 
of  that  faith,  which  looks  unto,  lays  hold  on, 
and  apprehends  that  righteoufnefs  for  j  unifi¬ 
cation. 

3.  God  the  Holy  Ghoft  convinces  men  of  the 
weaknefs,  imperfection,  and  infuffuiency  of  their 
own  righteoufnefs  to  juftify  them  before  God  ; 
he  brings  near,  and  fets  before  them  therighte- 
oul'nels  of  Chrift,  and  works  faith  in  them  to 
lay  hold  on  it,  and  receive  it ;  he  intimates  to 
their  confidences  the  juftifying  fentence  of  God, 

on 


i2  The  DOCTRINE  op 

on  the  account  of  Chrift’s  righteoufnefs,  ana 
bears  a  teftimony  to  and  with  their  ipirits,  that; 
they  are juftified  perfons ;;  and  hence  the  faints 
are  faid  to  be  “  juftified.  (u),  in  the  name  ofj 
the  Lord  fefus,  and  by  the  fpirit  of  our  God 
but  “  this  teftimony  of  the  bpiric  is  not  fo  pro-; 
perly  juihfication  itfelf,  as  an  aftu  il  perception  oil 
it,  before  granted,  by  a  kind  of  a  reflex  adl  ol: 
f-iith,,>  as  Dr.  Ames  fbj  expreffes  it.  Nowthisl 
is  the  part  which  Father,  Son,  and  Spirit,  feve- 
raily  bear  in  j unification :  The  Father  has  con¬ 
trived  it,  the  Son  has  procured  it,  and  the  Spirit1 
applies  it.  I  go  on, 

III.  T  o  confider  the  matter  of  juftification,  or 
what  that  is  for  the  fake  of  which  God’s  deft' 
are  ju  tified-  And, 

1.  Man’s  obedience  to  the  law  of  works  isl 
not  the  matter  of  juftification,  or  that  for  the! 
fake  of  which  he  is  juftified,  for  thb  is  imperfeft, 
and  therefore  riot  juftifying  ;  and  was  man’s 
obedience  his  juftifying  righteoufnefs,  hi?  jufti¬ 
fication  would  be  by  works,  and  not  by  grace 
which  is  contrary  to  the  whole  ftream  and  cur-1 
rent  of  fcripture.  Befides,  “  if  righteoufnefs 
is  by  the  law,  then  Chrift  is  dead  in  vain,”  and 
his  righteoufnefs  ufelefs;  w'hich  mull:  highly  re- 
fledl  both  on  the  grace  and  wildom  of  God. 

2.  Nor  is  man’s  obedience  to  the  gofpel,  as  to 
a  new  and  milder  law,  his  juftifying  righteouf¬ 
nefs  before  God.  The  fcheme  of  fome,  if  I  under- 
ftand  it  right,  is  this  :  That  Jefus  Chrift  has  pro¬ 
cured  a  relaxation  of  the  old  law,  and  has  intro- 

duced 

(а)  i  Cor.  vi.  ii. 

(б)  Amef<  Medulla  Theolog.  1.  i.  c.  27.  §.  9. 


I 


JUSTIFICATION. 


*3 


duced  a  new  law,  a  remedial  law,  a  law  of 
milder  term.1  ;  which  new  law  rs  the  gofpel,  ard 
its  terms,  faith  repentance,  and  new  obedi¬ 
ence;  which  th(  ugh  imperfect,  yet  being  bn- 
!  cere,  will  be  accepted  <f  by  God,  in  the  room 
of  aperfeft  righteoulnefs.  But  the  whole  fcheme 
is  entirely  falfe  ;  the  law  is  not  relaxed,  nor  any  of 
its  feveritiesabau  d  ;  itspoweris  not  infringed  ;  it 
has  the  fame  commanding  and  condemning  power 
it  ever  had  over  thofe  tha"  are  under  it ;  nor  is 
the  gofpePa!  law,  it’s  a  pure  declaration  of  grace 
and  ialvation  by  Chr  ft  ;  it  has  no  commands, 
but  all  promifes ;  there  is  nothing  in  it  that 
looks  like  a  law;  and,  if  faith  and  repentance 
were  the  terms  of  it,  and  required  by  it,  as 
condition'  of  mens  acceptance  with  God,  it 
■would  not  be  a  law  of  milder  tern  s  ;  for  it  was 
much  eafier  for  Adam,  in  a  ftate  of  innocence, 
to  have  kept  the  whole  law,  than  for  man  in  his 
fallen  ftate,  to  repent  and  believe  in  (Thrift  of 
himfelf;  befides,  nothing  can  mote  rtflett  upon 
the  juftice  of  God  than  to  fay,  that  he  will  accept 
of  an  imperfedl  righteoufnefs  in  the  room  of  a 
perfect  one  :  He,  who  is  *'•  the  judge  of  all  the 
earth,  will  do  right ;”  and  he,  whofe  “  judge¬ 
ment  is  according  to  truth  ”  will  never  call  or 
account  that  a  righteoufnefs  which  is  not  one. 

3.  Nor  is  a  profeftion  of  religion,  even  of 
the  belt,  the  matter  of  our  juftification.  Men 
may  have  a  form  of  godlinefs,  and  deny  the 
power  of  it,  have  a  name  to  live,  and  yet  be 
dead,  appear  outwardly  righteous  to  men,  and 
yet  be  inwardly  full  of  all  manner  of  impurity; 
they  may  fubmit  to  all  Chrift’s  ordinances,  be 

baptized 


f 


14 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


baptized  in  his  name,  fet  down  at  his  table,  and 
conftant'y  attend  on  his  word,  and  yet  be  far 
from  righteoufnefs,  their  fear  towards  God 
be  ng  only  taught  by  the  precept  of  men  ;  yet 
fuppofing  they  were  fincere  in  all  this,  they  could 
not  be  justified  by  it.  Sincerity,  in  any  reli¬ 
gion,  even  in  the  beft  religion,  is  not  our  jnfti- 
fying  righteoufnefs.  There  may  be  fincere  Ma¬ 
hometans  ^  fincere  Papi/is,  and  fincere  Pagans,  as 
well  as  fincere  believers  in  Chrifl ;  one  may  be 
a  fincere  perfecutor  of  the  true  religion,  as 
well  as  another  may  be  a  fincere  profeflor  of  it. 
But  taking  fincerity  in  the  beft  fenfe,  for  a  grace 
of  thefpiritof  God,  which,  indeed,  runs  thro’ 
and  accompanies  all  other  graces,  and  makes 
our  faith  to  be  unfeigned,  our  love  to  be  with¬ 
out  diffimulation,  and  our  hope  without  hypo- 
crify ;  I  fay,  taking  it  in  this  fenfe,  it  belongs 
to  fanft  fication,  and  not  to  juftification  ;  which 
are  two  diftinft  things,  and  not  to  be  confounded  ; 
for  the  whole  real  work  of  f uni  fication  is 
neither  the  whole  nor  a  part  of  our  justifying 
righteoufnefs  ;  and  if  the  whole  work  is  not,  then 
not  a  part  of  it;  and  if  not  apart  of  it,  then, 

4.  The  to  credere,  or  aft  of  believing,  which 
is  a  part  of  fanftification,  is  not  imputed  to  us 
for  juftification,  as  da)  A’menius  and  his  fol¬ 
lowers  have  affected  ;  endeavouring  to  tftablifh 
this  notion  from  tome  paffages  in  Rom.  iv.  3.  | 

5*  9- 

(a)  Annin.  Declar.  fent.  ad  Ord  p.  102.  &  Refpouf. 
ad  31.  Artie,  p.  138.  Epiftol.  ad  Hyppolyt.  Articul. 
Perpend,  p.  786.  Romonftr.  Confeff.  c.  io-  §  2.  &  c. 
18.  §■  3.  Bertii.  Epift.  difeept.  contr.  Lubbert.  p.  6,81. 
Vortlii  Scholia  contra  Lubbert.  p  1 77. 


JUSTIFICATION^  js 

5.  9.  where  faith  is  faid  to  be  counted  for 
righteoufnefs ;  particularly  the  faith  of  Abraham  f 
by  which  the  apoftle  means  not  the  ad,  but  the 
dbjed  of  faith,  even  the  righteoufnefs  of  Chrift, 
which  God,  in  ver.  6.  is  faid  to  impute  without 
works.  That  this  is  his  fenfe  is  manifeft,  from 
this  one  lingle  confideration  :  The  very  fame  itt 
which  was  imputed  to  Abraham  for  righteouf¬ 
nefs,  is  “  imputed  to  all  thofe  who  believe  on 
him,  that  railed  up  Jefus  our  Lord  from  the 
dead,”  Ver  22.  23.  24.  Now  fuppofing  that 
Abraham’s  faith  was  reckoned  and  imputed,  to 
him  for  a  juftifying  righteoufnefs,  it  cannot  be 
reafonably  thought  that  it  fhould  be  imputed  alio 
for  righteoufnefs  to  all  that  believe  :  Beiides, 
it  ought  to  be  obferved,  that  the  apoftle  does 
not  fay  that  this  was  imputed,  anti  dikaiofunest 
|  tnjtead  of  righteoufnefs  ;  but  eis  dikaioJunen)  unto 
righteoufnefs ,  and  intends  no  unore  here  than 
what  the  apoftle  elfewhere  (a)  fays,  that  “  wi  h 
the  heart  man  believes  unto  righteoufnefs;” 
i.  e.  with  his  heart,  or  heartily,  he  believes  in 
Chrift  for  righteoufnefs,  which  righteoufnefs, 
and  not  faith,  is  imputed  to  him  for  juftification  ; 
for  faith,  as  it  is  our  ad,  is  our  own ;  hence 
we  read  ( b )  of  his  faith,  and  my  faith,  and  thy 
faith  in  the  fcripture;  bnt  the  righteoufnefs  by 
Which  we  are  juftified  is  the:  righteoufnefs  of 
another,  and  therefore  not  faith.  Moreover, 
faith,  as  an  ad  of  ours,  is  a  duty  ;  fer  whatfo- 
ever  we  do,  in  a  religious  way,  we  do  but  what 
j  is  our  duty  to  do;  and,  if  it  is  a  duty,  it  be¬ 
longs  to  the  law ;  for  as  all  the  declarations  and 

promifes 

(6)  Hab.  iL  5.  James  ii.  18. 


(a)  Rom.  x.  sot 


The  DOCTRINE  op 


i  6 

promifes  of  grace  belong  to  the  gofpel,  fo  all 
huties  belong  to  ihe  law  ;  and  if  faith  belongs 
to  the  law,  as  a  duty,  ’tis  a  work  of  it,  and 
therefore  by  it  \  e  can’t  be  juftifi  d;  ‘  tor 
by  the  dee  Is  of  the  law  Jb-di  no  flefh  living 
be  justified  ”  1  elides,  ’tis  but  a  part  of  the 

Jaw,  though  one  <  f  the  weightier  parts  of  it} 
and  G  d,  ‘‘  whole  j.  dgment  is  according  to 
truth,' ”  will  never  reckon  or  account  a  partial 
conformity  to  the  law  a  compleat  i ighteoufnefs. 
Add  to  this,  that  far  h.  and  lighte  ufnel's  are 
inanifeftly  dift  mg  iihed  (a)  ;  “  the  righteouf- 
refs  of  Go  I  is  revealed  trcm  faith  to  faith  it) 
is  “  unto  all,  and  upon  all  them  that  beliete.” 
Something  elfe,  and  not  faith,  is  rep  efen.ed  as 
cii"  j  utif-.  ing righteoufnefs  ;  fa’th  is  not  the  blood; 
i, or  obe  d  nice  of  thrift,  and  y  et  bv  thefe  we 
are  laid  (b)  to  be  juftified,  or  made  righteous. 
V'.e  are,  indeed,  laid  (c)  to  be  “  juftlfied  by 
faith,”  lut  not  faith,  as  an  aft  of  ours,  for  then 
v.e  mould  be  juftified  by  works;  no  by  faith,  asj 
a  giace  of  the  fpirit,  for  th  s  would  be  to  con- 
i  und  juftification  and  fanttifieation  ;  but  we  are 
juftified  by  faith  obje&.velv,  as  it  looks  to,  re- 
Ce  ve. ,  apprehends,  and  embracesChnft’s  righte- 
cufnefs  for  juftification.  And  let  it  be  obferved. 
that  though  we  are  faid  to  be  juftified  b,  faith,! 
a  et  faith  is  never  laid  to  juftify  us.  (_And  here 
.Vive  me  leave  to  corretft  a  vulgar,  though  but  .; 
verbal  mi  bake,  in  calling  faith,  juftify  ing  faith 
I  am  well  fati  fied  found  divines  have  uied  thi j 
phra’ie  without  any  ill  meaning.  But  why  i 
*  fhould  ; 

(a)  Rom.  i.  18.  and  iii.  22.  (b)  Rom-  v.  9.  19 

(c)  Rom.  v.  1.  j  . 


ffiould  be  called  juftifying  faith,  any  more  than 
ado  ting  or  pardoning  faith,  I  fee  riot  ;  lince  it 
has  juft  the  fame  com  ern  in  adoption  ai  d  pardon, 
as  it  has  in  juftification.  Are  we  faid  to  be  juf- 
tified  by  faith,  or,  by  faith,  to  receive  the 
righteoufnefs  of  Chrift  for  juftification  i  W  e  (a) 
are  alfo  faid,  by  faith,  to  receive  the  remiffioH 
of  fins,  and  to  be  the  children  of  God,  by  faith, 
in  Chrift:  JefusT)  Befides,  what  do  we,  or  can 
we  fay  more  of  the  righteoufnefs  of  Chrift,  than 
that  it  is  a  juftifying  one  l  In  one  word,  it  is 
God,  and  not  faith,  that  juflifies.  But, 

5.  The  matter  of  our  juftification,  or  that  for 
the  fake  of  which  we  are  juftified ,  is  the  righte- 
oufnefs  of  the  Lord  Jefus  Chrift  j  by  which  I 
mean  not  his  elfential  righteoufnefs  as  God  ;  nor 
his  righteoufnefs  and  fidelity  to  him,  that  ap¬ 
pointed  him,  in  thedifcharge  of  his  mediatorial 
office ;  nor  do  l  take  in  any  of  his  aftions  per¬ 
formed  by  him  in  heaven,  as  Jefus  Chrift  the 
righ  eous,  only  thofe  which  he  wrought  in  his 
ftate  of  humiliation  here  on  earth  ;  and  not  all 
thefe  neither,  for  his  extraordinary  works  and 
miracles  muft  be  excluded.  But  by  the  righte¬ 
oufnefs  of  Chrift,  I  mean  that  which  ccnfifts  of 
what  is  commonly  called  his  active  ai  d  paffive 
obedience  ;  by  the  former,  is  meant  the  confor¬ 
mity  of  his  life  to  the  precepts  of  the  law,  and 
is,  ftridlly  fpeaking,  that  obedience  of  his,  by 
which  we  are  made  righteous and  by  the  lat  ter, 
is  meant  his  fufferings  and  death,  which,  in 
fcripture,  are  exorefled  by  his  blood.  This 
diftiniftion,  though  taken  from  thefchools,  is  not 
C  very 

(a)  A£ts  xxvi.  18.  Gal.  Hi.  26, 


iS  The  DOCTRINE  of 

very  accurate.  PalTive  obedience  is  a  contra, 
didtion  in  terms,  nor  can  Chrift’s  bufferings  and 
death  be  properly  called  obedience.  Obedience 
belongs  to  the  predicament,  or  clafs  of  action, 
and  bufferings  and  death  to  that  ob  paffion.  Be- 
fides,  Chrift’s  bufferings  and  death  flow  brom  his 
obedience;  they  are  the  effedts  of  it,  they  are 
in  confequence  of  his  fubjedtion  and  fubmifflon 
to  his  father’s  will.  What  looks  mrft  l'kely  to 
prove  Chrift’s  bufferings  and  death  to  be  an  obe¬ 
dience,  is  the  text  in  Phil.  ii.  8.  where  Chrift 
is  faid  to  be  “  obedient  unto  death  ”  But  this 
will  fall  fliort  of  doing  it  ;  for,  as  a  judicious  (a) 
divine  obferves,  it  may  as  well  be  inferred,  be- 
caube  Peter  and  Paul  confeffed  Chrift  unto  death, 
therefore  their  confeflion  and  death  were  one  and 
the  fame.  The  true  fenfe  of  the  words  is,  that 
Chrift  was  obedient  to  his  father  from  the  cradle 
to  the  crofs,  during  the  whole  courfe  of  his  life, 
even  to  the  very  moment  of  his  death  .It  will  be 
allowed,  that  Chrift  was,  in  borne  fenfe,  adtive  in 
his  bufferings,  he  being  God  as  well  as  man.  Hence 
he  is  faid  (b)  to  “  lay  down  his  life  of  himfelf to 
tc  pour  out  his  foul  unto  death  to  “  give  himfelf 
an  offering  and  bacrifice yea,  “  thro’  the  eternal 
fpirit,  to  offer  up  himfelf  to  God  and  it  will 
be  as  readily  granted,  that  Chrft’s  bufferings 
and  death,  which  are  commonly  called  his  paf- 
ftve  obedience,  are  requifite  unto,  and  are  im¬ 
puted  to  us  for  our  juftification.  Hence  we  are 
faid  ( c)  to  have  “  healing  by  his  ftripes,”  to 

be 

(a)  Vid.  Maccov.  Loc.  Commun.  c.  69.  p.  613. 

{ b )  Johnx.  18.  Ifai.  liii.  12.  Eph.  v.  2.  fdeb.  ix.  14. 

(c)  Ifai.  liii.  5.  Rom.  v,  9.  io. 


JUSTIFICATION.  19 

be  “juftified  by  his  blood,”  and  to  be  “  recon¬ 
ciled  to  God  by  his  death;”  but  then  this  is  not 
to  be  underftood  as  exclufive  of  the  imputation 
of  his  adive  obedience,  nor  of  the  hohnefs  of 
his  human  nature.  There  are  fome  divines  (a) 
that  exclude  Chrift’s  adive  .obedience  from  being 
any  part  of  the  righteoufnefs  by  which  we  are 
juftified :  They  allow,  that  it  is  a  '-ondition  re- 
quifite  in  him,  as  mediator,  which  qualifies  him 
for  his  office,  and  that  without  it  his  death  would 
not  have  been  effectual  and  meritorious.’  But 
they  deny  that  this  obedience,  ftridly  and  pro¬ 
perly  fpeaking  is  the  matter  of  our  juftification, 
or  that  it  is  imputed  to  us,  or  reckoned  to  us,  as 
ours;  they  fuppofe,  that  Chrift  was  obliged  to 
this  obedience  as  a  creature  for  himfelf,  and 
that  it  was  unnecefiary  to  us,  becaufe  his  Buf¬ 
ferings  and  death  were  fufficient  for  our  juftifi¬ 
cation.  On  the  orher  hand,  I  firmly  believe, 
that  not  only  the  adive  obedience  of  Chrift, 
with  his  fufferings  and  death, [but  alfo  that  the 
holinefs  of  his  human  nature  is  imputed  to  us 
for  juftificationT]  The  law  requires  an  holy  na¬ 
ture,  and  perfed  obedience,  and,  in  cafe  of 
dilobedience,  enjoins  puniffiment.  Through  fin 
our  nature  is  become  unholy,  our  obedience 
imperfed,  and  fo  we  are  liable  to  puniffiment. 
Chrift  has  aifumed  an  holy  human  nature,  and 
in  it  performed  perfed  obedience  to  the  law, 
and  fuffered  the  penalty  of  it ;  all  which  he  did 
not  for  himfelf,  but  for  us ;  and  unto  us  it  is  all 

imputed 

( a )  Vid.  Wendelin.  Theolog.  Chriftian.  1.  i.  c.  25. 
thef.  7.  p.  492.  Of  this  opinion  were  Pif cater ,  Forbes, 
and  others. 


20 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


imputed  for  our  juftification.  He  u  is  of  God  I  mi 
made  (a)  unto  us,  i.  e.  by  imputation,  wildom.:  Ini 
righteoufnefs,  fanftification,  and  redemption. ; 
IVifd-.m  may  ftand,  in  general,  for  juftification,))  ' 
bficaufe  there  is  in  it  l’uch  a  manifeft  difplay  of  elf 
the  wildom  of  God;  and  the  other  three  may  Cki 
be  confidered  as  fo  many  parts  of  it.  Santtifi-*  tie 
cation  may  intend  the  holinefs  of  his  human  na-  . 
ture  ;  which  is  chat  “  law  of  the  fpirit  of  life  nit 
in  Chrift  Jefus,  which  frees  from  the  law  of  fmj  in 
and  death.”  Righteoufnefs  may  fignify  his  active  pi 
obedience,  by  which  “  many  are  made  righte-1  p 
ous  ;”  and  Redemption  may  exprefs  his  fufferings  > 
and  death,  whereby  “  fin  was  condemned  in  t 
the  fltlh,”  and  fo  the  whole  “  righteoufnefs  of  t 
the  law  is  fulfilled  in  us.”.  I  fhall  now  very 
briefly  give  lome  reafons  why,  I  think,  Chrift’sl 
aft.ve  obedience,  in  particular,  as  well  as  his  t 
fuff  rings  and  death,  is  imputed  for  juftification.  1 
i  Becaufe  all  that  mufl  be  imputed  for  our 
juftification,  which  the  law  requires,  and  with¬ 
out  which  it  cannot  be  fatisfied.  Now,  let  it  be: 
obferved,  that  the  law,  before  man  had  finned, 
only  obliged  him  to  obedience  ;  fince  his  fall,  it 
obliges  him  both  to  obedience  and  punilhment ;  1 
and,  unlefs  its  precepts  are  perfectly  obeyed, 
and  its  whole  penalty  endured,  it  cannot  be 
fatisfied;  and  unlefs  it  is  fatisfied,  there  can  be 
ao  juftification  by  it.  If  Jefus  Chrift,  there¬ 
fore,  engages,  as  a  furety,  to  make  fatisfadtion 
to  the  law,  in  the  room  and  ftead  of  his  people, 
he  mufl  both  obey  the  precept  of  the  law,  and 
fuflfer  the  penalty  of  it;  his  fubmitting  to  the  I 

one, 


(a)  i  Cor.  i.  30. 


JUSTIFICATION.  a* 

id,; one,  without  conforming  to  the  other,  is  not 
n, Sufficient;  one  debt  is  not  paid  by  another  ;  his 
"baying  off  the  debt  of  puniihment  d:d  not  exempt 
i,  from  obedience,  as  the  paying  off  the  debt  of 
jfpbedience  did  not  exempt  from  puniihment. 
y  Chrift  did  not  fatisfy  the  whole  law  by  either  of 
i.  them  feparately,  buc  by  both  conjunftl}  ;  by 
.  his  fufferings  and  death  he  fatisfied  the  threat- 
*  nings  of  the  law,  but  not  the  precepts  of  it  j 
1  and,  by  his  active  obedience,  he  fatbfied  the 
;  I  preceptive  part  of  the  law,  but  not  the  penal 
part ;  but,  by  both,  he  fatisfied  the  whole  law, 

;  and  magnified  it,  and  made  it  honorable,  and 
therefore  both  muftbe  imputed  for  our  juftifica- 
]  tion. 

I  2.  Becaufe  we  are  juftified  by  a  rigbteoufncfs, 
land  that  is  the  righteoufnefs  of  Chrift.  Now 
|  righteoufnefs,  ftriftly  fpeaking,  confifts  in  aftual 
obedience  ;  “  it  fhall  be  our  righteoufnefs,  if 
we  obferve  to  do  all  thefe  commandments.” 
Deut.  vi.  25.  Chrift’s  righteoufnefs  lay  in  doing, 
not  in  fuffering.  “  All  (a)  righteoufnefs  is 
either  an  habit  or  an  aft;  but  fufferings  are 
neither,  and  therefore  notrighteoufnefs  :  No  man 
is  righteous  becaufe  he  is  punifhed  ;  if  fo,  the 
devils  and  damned  in  hell  would  be  righteous,  in 
proportion  to  their  puniihment  ;  the  morefevere 
their  puniihment,  and  the  more  grievous  their 
torments,  the  greater  their  righi  eousnefs  mull 
be  ;  if  there  is  any  righteoufnefs  in  puniihment, 
it  muft  be  in  the  punifher,  not  in  the  punifhed  ” 
If  then  we  are  juftified  by  the  righteoufnefs  of 

Chrift 

(a)  Molinaeus  contr.  Tilen.  in  Maccov.  Loc.  Com- 
mun.  c.  69.  p.  6s 3. 


22 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


Chr’ft  imputed  to  us,  it  mud  be  by  his  attivi 
obedience,  and  not  merely  by  his  fufferings  and 
death  ;  becaufe  thefe,  though  they  free  us  from 
death,  yet  they  do  not,  ftridtly  fpeaking,  make 
us  righteous. 

3.  Becaufe  we  are  exprefsly  faid  fa)  to  be 
et  made  righteous  by  the  obedience  of  one,” 
which  is  Chrift.  Now  by  obedience,  in  this: 
place,  cannot  be  meant  the  fufferings  and  death 
of  Chrift ;  becaufe,  ftri&ly  fpeaking,  they  are 
not  his  obedience,  but  flow  from  it,-  as  has  been 
obferved.  Betides,  the  antithefis,  in  the  text,! 
determines  the  fenfe  of  the  words ;  for  if,  by 
one  man’s  adtual  difobedience  many  were  made 
fir/ners,  fo,  by  the  rule  of  oppofition,  by  one 
man’s  aftual  obedience,  many  are  made  right-: 
eous. 

4.  Becaufe  the  reward  of  life  is  promifechnot! 
to  fuffering,  but  to  doing;  the  law  fays,  do  this 
and  live  ;  it  promifes  life  not  to  him  that  fuffers! 
the  penalty,  but  to  him  that  obeys  the  precept. 
<c  There  never  was  a  law,  as  an  excellent; 
divine  fb )  obferves,  even  among  men,  either 
promifing  or  declaring  a  reward  due  to  the  cri¬ 
minal,  becaufe  he  had  undergone  the  punifhment 
of  his  crimes.”  Chrift’s  fufferings  and  death 
being  fatisfaftory  to  the  comminatory  or  threat- 
ning  part  of  the  law,  are  imputed  to  us  for  juf- 
tification,  that  fo  we  may  be  freed  and  difcharged 
from  the  curfe,  and  hell,  and  wrath.  But  thefe,  | 
as  they  do  not  conftitute  us  righteous,  do  not, 

properly 

(a')  Rom.  v.  19. 

( b )  Dr.  Goodwin's  Works,  Vol.  III.  Par.  3.  of 
Chritt  the  Mediator,  p.  338. 


JUSTIFICATION.  23 

roperly  fpeaking,  entitle  us  to  eternal  life  ; 
ut  the  adive  obedience,  or  rightecufnefs  of 
hrift,  being  imputed  to  us,  is  our  “  juftilication 
f  life,”  or  what  gives  us  the  title  to  eternal 
fe. 

5.  Becaufe  Chrift’s  a&ive  obedience  was  per- 
armed  for  us,  in  our  room  and  ftead,  and  there- 
3re  muft  be  imputed  to  us  for  juftification.  If 
:  fhould  be  faid,  that  Chrift:,  as  a  creature, 
eing  made  of  a  woman,  and  made  under  the 
iw7  was  obliged  to  y  eld  obedience  to  that 
jiwfor  himfelf ;  I  anfwer,  that  he  affamed  hu- 
ian  nature,  became  a  creature,  fubjetted  him- 
df  to  the  law,  and  obliged  himfelf  to  yield 
bedience  to  it,  not  for  himfelf,  but  for  us;  not 
pon  his  own,  but  our  account ;  “  to  (a)  or  for 
s  a  child  is  born,  a  fon  is  given and  if  Chrift; 
Inly  in  his  fufferings,  and  not  in  his  obedience, 
I;  given  to  us,  we  ihould  not  have  a  whole  Chrift 
j;iven  us,  only  a  fuffering  Chrift,  and  not  an 
Obeying  one. 

j  Let  it  further  be  obferved,  that  Chrift’s  ac~ 
live  obedience  to  the  law  for  us,  and  in  our 
00m  and  ftead,  does  not  exempt  us  from  ner- 
onal  obedience  to  it,  any  more  than  his  fuffer¬ 
ings  and  death  exempt  us  from  a  corporal  death, 
hr  fuffering  for  his  fake.  'Tis  true,  indeed, 
Ive  do  not  fuffer  and  die  in  the  l'enfe  he  did,  to 
atisfy  juftice,  and  atone  for  fin  ;  fo  neither  do 
ve  yield  obedience  to  the  law,  in  order  to  obtain 
ternal  life  by  it.  By  Chrift’s  obedience  for  us, 
Ive  are  exempted  from  obedience  to  the  law  in 
I  his  fenfe,  but  not  from  obedience  to  it,  as  a 

rule 


( a )  Ifai.  ix.  6, 


J4 


The  DOCTRINE 


OF 


rule  of  walk  and  converfation,  by  which  we  may 
glorify  God,  and  exprefs  our  thankfulnefs  tr 
h  m,  for  his  abundant  mercies.  Well  then,  r 
is  wtiat  i‘  commonly  called  Chrilt’s  attive  anc 
pjlhve  obed  ence,  together  with  the  holinefs  oil 
his  natu  e,  from  whence  all  his  obedience  flows 
winch  is  the  matter  of  our  juftification  before 
God.  Many  things  might  be  laid  in  commenda  ! 
tion  of  this  glorious  righteoufnefs  of  the  medi. 
ator.  The  nature  and  excellency  of  it  may  b( 
collected  from  the  feveral  names  or  appellations, 
by  which  it  is  called  in  feripture. 

1.  It  is  called  (-?),  “  the  righteoufnefs  o; 
God  ;”  and  that  not  only  becaule  it  ltands  op 
pofed  to  the  rightei  ufnefs  ot  man,  but  becaufe 
if 'was  wrought  out  by  one  that  is  God,  as  well 
as  man  ;  and  is  greatly  approved  and  gracioufly 
accepted  of  by  God,  and  by  him  freely  imputed 
to  all  his  people,  who  are  juiliried  from  all 
things  by  it  in  his  fight. 

2.  It  is  called  [b)}  “  the  righteoufnefs  oJj 
lone;”  that  is,  of  one  of  the  perfons  of  the 

Trinity;  it  it  not  the  righteoufnefs  of  the  father; 
nor  of  the  fpirit,  but  of  the  foil,  who,  though' 
he  is  a  partaker  of  two  natures,  yet  is  but  one 
perfon  ;  it  is  the  righteoufnefs  of  one,  who  i; 
a  common  he  d  to  all  his  feed,  as  Aclam  was  tc 
his.  It  may  indeed,  be  called  the  righteouf  ef: 
of  many,  even  of  all  the  faints,  becaufe  it  i; 
imputed  to  them,  and  they  all  have  an  equa 
right  to  it  ;  but  yet  the  author  is  but  one  ;  anc 
therefore  we  are  not  juftified,  partly  by  our  owr 
righteoufnefs,  and  partly  by  Chrilt’s  ;  for  ther 

we 


(b)  Chap.  v.  18. 


(a)  Rom.  i.  17.  and  iii.  22, 


JUSTIFICATION.  25 

we  lhould  be  juftified  by  the  righteoufnefs  of 
t\vkb,  and  not  of  one  only. 

3.  It  is  called  (' a ),  “  the  righteoufnefs  of 
the  law  for  though  righteoufnefs  does  not 
some  by  our  obedience  to  the  law,  yet  it  does 
by  Chrift’s  obedience  to  it ;  the  ugh,  by  th© 
deeds  of  the  law,  as  performed  by  man,  no  flelh 
living  can  be  juftified,  yet,  by  the  deeds  of  the 
law,  as  performed  by  Chrift,  all  the  eletft  are 
juftified.  Chrift’s  righteoufnefs  may  be  truly- 
called  a  legal  righteoufnefs;  it  is  what  the  law 
demands,  and  is  every  way  commenfurate  to 
it  ;  it  is  a  compleat  conformity  to  all  its  precepts  ; 
by  it  the  law  is  magnified  and  made  honorable. 
’Tis  true,  indeed,  it  maces  no  difeovery  of  it, 
for  it  is  “  manifefted  without  the  law,  though 
witneffed  to  both  by  law  and  prophets  ’tis 
the  golptl  that  is  the  adminif  ration  of  it;  for 
therein  it  is  revealed  from  faith  "o  faith. 

4.  It  is  called  ( b ),  “  the  righteoufnefs  of 
faith  not  that  faith  is  oUr  righteoufnefs, 
either  in  whole,  or  in  part ;  it  is  not  the  matter 
of  our  juftification,  as  has  been  before  obferved; 
it  has  no  manner  of  cafual  influence  on  it,  nor 
is  it  imputed  to  us  for  it ;  but  Chrift’s  righteouf- 
nefs  is  called  fo,  becaufe  faith  receives  it,  puts 
it  on,  rejoices  in  it,  and  boafts  of  it. 

5.  It  is  called  (r),  “  the  gift  of  righteouf- 
nefs”  and  a  “  free  gift,”  and  ie  a  gift  by 
grace ;”  becaufe  it  is  freely  wrought  out  by 
Chrift,  and  freely  imputed  by  God  the  Father^ 

D  and 

(a)  Rom.  viii,  4.  (l>)  Chap,  iv,  13,  (e)  Bhap.  v. 

15,  16,  17. 


a  6 


Thz  DOCTRINE  of 


and  faith  is  freely  given  to  lay  hold  on  it,  and 
embrace  it. 

6.  It  is  called,  lt  the  bell  robe,  or,  as  in  the  i 
Gr eek  text  f  a),  the  firft  robe for  though  Adam’s  \ 
robe  of  righteoufnefs  in  innocence,  was  firft  in 
wear,  this  was  firft  provided  in  the  covenant  of 
grace;  this  was  firft  in  defignation,  though  that 
was  firft  in  ufe  :  and  it  may  well  be  called  the  i 
beft  robe,  becaufe  it  is  a  better  robe  than  ever  ; 
finful  fallen  man  had  ;  his  being  imperfeft,  and 
polluted,  and  infufficient  to  juftify  him  before 
God,  or  fkreen  him  from  divine  juftice,  or  fe« 
cure  turn  from  divine  wrath  ;  yea,  ’tis  a  better  ' 
robe  than  ever  Adam  had  in  Eden,  or  the  angels 
have  in  heaven  ;  for  the  righteoufnefs  of  either 
of  thefe,  is  but  the  righteoufnefs  of  a  creature, 
whereas  this  is  the  righteoufnefs  of  God  ;  be¬ 
tides,  the  righteoufnefs  of  Adam  was  a  righte¬ 
oufnefs  that  might  be  loft,  and  which  was  aftually 
loft;  for  “  God  made  man  upright,  and  he 
fought  out  many  inventions,”  whereby  he  loft 
his  righteoufnefs ;  fo  that  now  there  is  none 
of  Adam's  pofterity  righteous  in  and  of  them- 
felres;  no,  notone;  and  as  for  the  righteouf¬ 
nefs  of  the  angels,  it  is  plain,  it  vvas  a  lofeable  j 
righteoufnefs,  tor  many  of  them  left  their  firft 
eftale,  and  loft  their  righteoufnefs  ;  and  the  ! 
true  reafon  why  the  others  Hand  in  theirs  is,  be- 
catile  of  confirming  grace  from  Chrift;  but 
Chrift’s  r ighteoulnef s  is  an  everlafting  one,  and 
®flnnot,  nor  will  it,  ever  be  loft. 

Jt 

(a)  Luke  xv.  22.  ten  flolen  ten  pro  ten,  ftolam  pri- 
Y Lat.  Arias  JHontan.  See  Hnjfey's  Glory 
•f  Chnft  unveiled,  p,  741,  742,  743,  -44, 


*7 


JUSTIFICATION. 

It  is  a  righteoufnefs  which  juftice  can  find  no 
fault  wkb,  but  is  entirely  fatisfied  with  ;  it  juf- 
tifies  “  from  all  things  from  which  ye  could  not 
bejuftified  by  the  law  of  Mofes it  fecures 
from  all  wrath  and  condemnation,  and  filences 
allaccufations  ;  for  “  who  fhall  lay  any  thing  to 
the  charge  of  God’s  ele<ft?  it  is  God’  that  jufti- 
fieth  It  will  “  anfwer  for  us  in  a  time  to 
come,”  and  give  us  an  admittance  in  God’s 
kingdom  and  glory  ;  when  fuch  that  have  no 
better  righteoufnefs  than  what  the  Scribes  and 
Pbarifees  had,  fhall  not  enter  there  ;  and  all 
that  are  without  this  “  wedding  garment,” 
fhall  be  fhut  out,  and  “  caft  into  outer  darknefs, 
where  is  weeping,  wailing,  and  grrafliing  of 
teeth.”  But  I  proceed, 

IV.  To  confider  the  form  of  juftlfTation^ 
which  is  by  the  imputation  of  this  righteoufnefs 
of  Chrift,  I  have  been  fpeakingof ;  “  even  (a) 
as  David  defcribeth  the  bleffednefs  of  the  man, 
unto  whom  God  imputed  righteoufnefs  without 
works.”  [When  God  is  faid  to  impute  Chrift’s 
righteoufnefs  to  us,  the  meaning  is,  that  he* 
reckons  it  as  ours,  being  wrought  out  for  us^ 
and  accounts  us  righteous  by  it,  as  though  we 
had  performed  it  in  our  own  perfonsj  And 
now,  that  it  may  appear  that  we  are  juftified  by 
the  righteoufnefs  of  Chrift  imputed  to  us,  cb- 
ferve, 

i.  That  we  are  in  opr  qwn  perfons  ungodly, 
who  are  juftified,  for  God  “  juftifieth  the  un¬ 
godly  (bji”  if  ungodly,  then  without  a  righte- 
©ufneft,  as  all  .Adam’s  pofterity  aife  ;  and  if 

without 

(«)  Rom.  ir.  6.  (b)  Rom.  iv.  5. 


28  The  DOCTRINE  op 

without  a  righteoufnefs,  then,  if  we  are  jufti- 
fied,  itmuftbe  by  fome  righteoufnefs  imputed  to 
us,  or  placed  to  our  account ;  which  can  be  no 
other  than  the  righteoufnefs  of  Chrift. 

2  We  are  juftified  either  by  an  inherent,  or 
by  an  imputed  righteoufnefs  ;  not  by  an  inherent 
one,  becaufe  that  is  a  righteoufnefs  within  us, 
whereas  the  righteoufnefs  by  which  we  are  juf- 
tified  is  a  righteoufnefs  without  us;  it  is 
“  u  to  (a)  all,  and  upon  all  them  that  believe. ” 
And,  if  we  are  not  juftified  by  an  inherent 
righieoufnefs,  then  it  mud  be  by  an  imputed 
one,  becaufe  there  remains  no  other. 

3.  The  righteoufnefs  by  which  vre  are  jufti¬ 
fied  is  not  our  own  righteoufnefs,  but  the  righte¬ 
oufnefs  of  another,  even  the  righteoufnefs  of 
C  hrift :  “  That  I  may  be  found  in  Chrift,  fays 
the  apoftle  ( b ),  not  having  mine  own  righte¬ 
oufnefs,  which  is  of  the  law,  but  that  wh  ch  is 
through  the  faith  of  Chrift  ”  Now,  the  righte- 
oufneis  of  another  cannot  be  made  ours,  or  we 
be  juftified  by  it,  any  other  way  than  by  an  im¬ 
putation  of  it. 

£4.  The  \  ame  way  that  Adam’s  fin  becomes 
ours,  or  we  are  made  finners  by  it,  the  fame 
way  Chrift’s  righteoufnefs  becomes  ours,  or 
■we  are  made  righteous  by  it.  Now,  Adam's 
fin  becomes  ours  by  imputation,  and  fo  does 
Chrift’s  righteoufnefs,  according  to  the  apof¬ 
tle  ( c )  :  ‘  As  by  one  man’s  difobedience  many 
were  made  finners,  fo,  by  the  obedience  of  one, 
ftiall  many  be  made  righteous. ’’J 

5.  The, 

/  ...  D  ‘ 

(a)  Rom.  Jii.  22.  ( b )  Phil.  iii.  9. 

(c)  Rom.  v.  19. 


29 


JUSTIFICATION. 

5.  The  fame  way  that  our  ftns  became 
thrift’s,  his  righteGufnefs  becomes  curs.  Now 
■  our  fin’s  became  Chrift’s  by  imputation  only  ; 
the  Father  laid  them  on  him  by  imputation,  and 
he  took  them  to himfelf  by  voluntary  fufpeption  ; 
they  were  placed  to  his  account,  and  he  looked 
upon  himfelf  as  anfwerable  to  juftice  for  them. 
Now,  in  the  fame  way  hisrighteoufnefs  becomes 
ours  ;  u  For  he,  who  knew  no  fin,  was  made 
fin  for  us,  that  we  might  be  made  the  righteouf- 
nefs  of  God  in  him,”  2  Cor.  v.-  21.  But  I 
haften, 

V.  To  enquire  into  the  date  of  juflification, 
concerning  which  there  have  been  various  fen- 
timents  (a).  Some  have  thought  that  it  will  not 
be  compleated  until  the  day  of  judgment ;  others, 
that  it  commences  at,  or  upon  believing,  and 
not  before  ;  others,  that  it  took  plar  e  at  Chrift’s 
refurrection  from  the  dead,  v  hen  he  was  jufti- 
fied,  and  all  the  eled  in  him  ;  others//;^  that  it 
bears  date  from  the  time  that  Chrift  was  firft: 
.  promifed,  as  the  mediator,  which  was  quickly  af¬ 
ter  the  fall  ;  others  carry  it  up  as  high  as  the 
covenant  tranfadions  between  the  Father  and 
the  Son,  and  the  furetyfhip  engagements  ©f 
Chrift  from  eternity,  which  are  theprefent  fen- 
timents  of  my  mind.  The  method  in  which  I 
fhall  endeavour  to  reprefent  them  to  others, 
lhall  be  as  follows  : 

Firft,  I  fhall  endeavorro  prove  that  that  which 
j  is  properly  juftification,  is  antecedent  to  any  ad 
of  believing.  Secondly. 

(a)  ■  Vid  Tnrretin.  Inftitut.  Theolog.  Tom.  II. 
loc.  16.  Qiiaeft.  9.  §.  1. 

( b )  Maccov.  Loc.  Commun,  c.  69.  p,  6c8. 


1 


3° 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


Secondly.  That  the  juftification  by,  or  at,  or 
«pon  believing,  is  not  properly  juftification. 

Thirdly.  Anfwer  the  obj  eel  ions  made  againft 
this  doctrine. 

[ ~Fir/t  I  lhall  endeavour  to  prove,  that  that 
which  is  properly  juftification,  is  before  faith,  or 
antecedent  to  any  aft  of  believing  of  ours  ;  which 
I  aopreheud,  may  be  fairly  concluded  from  the 
following  confiderations. 

i.  Faith  is  not  the  caufe,  but  the  fruit  and  ef- 
feft  of  juftification.  The  rea'fon  why  we  are 
juftified,  is  not  becaufe  we  have  faith  ;  but  the 
reafon  why  we  have  faith,  is  becaufe  we  are 
juftified.  W as  there  no  fuch  blefting  of  grace  as 
juftification  of  life  provided  for  the  fons  of  men, 
there  would  be  no  fuch  thing  as  faith  in  Chrilfc 
bellowed  upon  them,  nor,  indeed,  would  there 
be  any  life  for  it ;  and  though  it  is  provided,  yet 
fince  not  for  all  men,  therefore  all  men  have  not 
faith.  The  reafon  why  fome  do  not  believe,  is, 
becaufe  (aj  they  are  “  not  of  Chrift’s  fheep 
they  never  were  chofen  in  him,  nor  juftified  by 
him,  but  are  juftly  left  in  their  fins,  and  fo  to  con- 
/  demnation  ;  the  reafon  why  others  do  believe, 

is,  becaufe  ( b )  they  “  are  ordained  to  eternal 
life,”  have  a  jufti-fying  righteoufnefs  provided 
for  them,  and  are  juftified  by  it,  and  lhall  never 
enter  into  condemnation  :  And,  in  aflerting  this, 
I  fay  no  more  than  what  Dr.  Tioifje,  the  famous 
Prolocutor  to  the  Aflemb'y  of  Divines,  has  faid 
before  me.  His  words  are  thele  :  “  Before 

“  faitn 

(a)  John  x.  26 
(t)  A&ts  xiii.  48. 


JUSTIFICATION.  3* 

faith  (a)  the  righteoufnefs.  of  Chrift  was  curs, 
being  in  the  intention  of  Cod  the  Faiher,  and 
Chrift  the  Mediator,  wrought  out  for  us ;  and 
becaufe  wrought  out  for  us,  therefore  God,  in 
his  own  time,  gives  us  grace  of  every  kind,  and, 
among  others,  faith  itfelf,  and, atlaft,  the  crown 
ofheavenly  glory. ”  And  a  little  after  he  fays  s 
Before  faith  and  repentance  the  righteoul- 
tvefs  of  Chrift  is  applied  unto  us  ;  l'lnce  it  is 
On  the  account  of  that,  that  Nve  obtain  effica¬ 
cious  grace,  to  believe  in  Chrift  and  repent. ’•* 
Likewife  the  judicious  Pemble  writes  to  the  fame 
effect  fbj  when,  obferving  a  twofold  juftification, 
he  fays,  the  one  is  “  In  joro  Divmo,  in  Gcd’s 
fight,  and  this  goes  hefore  all  our  fandifica- 
tion ;  for  even  whilft  the  eled  are  uncon¬ 
verted,  they  are  then  cftualh  jujtijied,  and 
freed  from  all  (in,  by  the  death  of  Chrift, 
and  God  lo  efteems  of  them  as  free,  and,  hav¬ 
ing  accepted  of  that  fatisfadion,  is  aftuull)/  re¬ 
conciled  to  them.  By  this  juftification,  we  are 
freed  from  the  guilt  of  our  fins  ;  and  becr.ufi 
that  is  done  away,  God,  in  due  time,  pro¬ 
ceeds  to  give  us  the  grace  of  fandificarion,  to 
free  from  fin’s  corruption  ftill  inherent  in  our 
perfons.”  The  other  is,  “  ]n  foro  cr fcientia , 
in  their  own  fenfe,  which  is  but  the  reve¬ 
lation  and  certain  declaiation  of  God’s  former 
fecret  ads  of  accepting  Chrift’s  righteoulnels 
to  our  juftification.”  And  Macwius  fays, 
That  becaufe  that  Gcd  juftifies  us,  therefore 

he 

(«)  Tivijfe.  Vindicii  Gratiae,  I.  t.  par.  2.  f.  2$.- 
p.  197. 

{b)  Vicl.  Pemf  le’s  Works,  p.  2 4. 


32  L  The  DOCTRINE  of 

he  gives  us  faith,  and  other  fpiritual  gifts. y> 
Now,  if  juflification  is  the  caufe,  and  faith  the 
effect ;  then,  as  every  caufe  is  before  its  effedt, 
and  every  effedt  follows  its  own  caufe,  juftifica- 
tion  mull  be  before  faith,  and  faith  mult  follow 
juflification. 

2.  Juflification  is  the  objedt,  and  faith  is  the 
adt,  which  is  converfant  with  it.  Now  the  ob¬ 
jedt  does  not  depend  upon  the  adt,  but  the  adt 
upon  the  objedt.  Every  objedt  is  prior  to  the 
adt,  which  is  converfant  with  it  ;  unlefs  it  be 
when  an  adt  gives  being  to  the  objedt,  which 
cannot  be  the  cafe  here  ;  unlefs  we  make  faith 
to  be  che  caufe  or  matter  cf  our  juflification, 
which  has  been  already  difproved.  Faith  is  the 
evidence,  not  the  caufe  of  juflification  ;  andif  it 
is  an  evidence,  that  of  which  it  is  an  evidence, 
mult  exift  before  it.  “  Faith  is,  indeed,  the  evi¬ 
dence  of  things  not  feen  •”  Lut  it  is  not  the  evi¬ 
dence  of  things  that  are  not  :  What  the  eye  is 
in  the  body,  that  faith  is  in  the  foul.  The  eye 
b j  virtue  of  itsvilive  faculty  beholds  fenfible  ob¬ 
jects,  but  does  not  produce  them  ;  and  did  they 
n  )t  previcufly  exift,  could  not  behold  them.  We 
li  e  the  fun  fhining  in  its  brightnefs,  but  did  it 
not  exift  before,  it  could  not  be  viiible  to  us ; 
the  fame  observation  will  hold  good  in  ten  thou- 
fiand  other  inftances.  Faith  is  the  hand  which 
receives  the  blefling  cf  juflification  from  the 
Lord,  and  righteoufnefs,  by  which  the  foul 
is  juftified  from  the  God  of  its  falvation  ;  but 
then  this  blefiing  muft  exift  before  faith  can 
receive  it.  If  any  fhould  think,  fit  to  diflin- 
guifh  between  the  aft  of  juflification,  and  the 

righteoufnefs 


33 


JUSTIFICATION. 

righteoufnefs  of  Chrift,  by  which  we  are  juf- 
tified ;  and  objett,  that  not  j  unification,  but  the 
righteoufnefs  of  Chrift,  is  the  objedfc  of  faith  :  I 
reply,  either  the  righteoufnefs  of  Chrift,  as  juf¬ 
tifying,  is  the  objecft  of  faith,  or  it  is  not  ;  if  it  is 
not,  then  ’tis  ufelefs,  and  to  be  laid  afide  in  the 
bufmefs  of  juftification  ;  if,  as  juftifying,  it  is 
the  object  of  faith,  what  is  it  elfe  but  juftifica¬ 
tion  ?  Chrilt’s  righteoufnefs  juftifying  me,  is 
my  juftification  before  God,  and,  as  fuch,  my 
faith  confiders  it,  and  fays,  with  the  church  (a), 
“  Surely,  in  the  Lord  have  I  righteoufnefs  and 
ftrength.” 

3.  The  eleft  of  God  are  juftified  whilft  un¬ 
godly,  and  therefore,  before  they  believe  ;  the 
reafon  of  the  confequence  is  plain,  becaufe  a 
believer  is  not  an  ungodly  perl'on.  That  God’s 
eleift  are,  by  nature,  ungodly,  will  not  be  de¬ 
nied  ;  as  fuch,  Chrift  died  for  them  :  “  While  (b) 
we  were  yet  without  ftrength,  in  due  time 
Chrift  died  for  the  ungodly.’’  And  ’tis  as  evi¬ 
dent,  that,  as  luch,  God  juftifies  them  :  “  But  (c) 
to  him  that  worketh  not,  but  believeth  on  him 
that  juftifieth  the  ungodly,  his  faith  is  counted 
for  righteoufnefs.”  Not  that  God  juftifies  the 
ungodly  without  a  righteoufnefs  ;  but  he  im¬ 
putes  and  reckons  to  them  the  righteoufnefs  of 
his  fon  ;  for  otherwife  he  would  do  that  himfelf 
which  he  abhors  in  others  :  “  For  (d)  he  that 
juftifieth  the  wicked,  and  he  that  condemneth 
the  juft,  they  both  are  an  abomination  to  the 
Lord.”  Nor  does  he  juftify  them  in  their  ungodli- 


E 


nefs. 


(a)  Ifai.  mIv.  24. 
(c)  Rom.  iv.  j. 


{ b )  Rom.  v.  6. 

( d )  Prov.  xvii.  ie 


34 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


nefs,  but  from  it ;  and,  indeed,  tc  from  all  things, 
from  which  they  could  not  be  juftified  by  the 
law  of  Mo/ei  and  yet  he  juftifies  them  being 
ungodly.  Now,  if  it  can  be  proved  that  a  be¬ 
liever  is,  or  may  be,  called  an  ungodly  perfon, 
then  there  is  no  ftrength  in  my  argument  ;  but, 
I  apprehend,  it  can’t  be  proved,  from  fcripture, 
th  t  a  believer  is  fo  called  ;  nor  can  any  juft  rea- 
fon  be  given  why  he  fhould  ;  feeing  an  ungodly 
perfon  is  one  that  is  without  God,  i.  e.  without 
the  grace  and  fear  of  God;  and  without Chrift, 
being  deftitute  of  a  true  knowledge  of  him, 
faith  in  him,  and  love  to  him;  all  which  is  in¬ 
compatible  with  the  character  of  a  believer.  I 
conclude  then,  that  if  God  juftifies  his  eleft 
when  they  are  ungodly,  then  he  juftifies  them 
before  they  believe,  which  is  the  thing  I  have 
undertaken  to  prove. 

4.  All  the  eleift  of  God  were  juftified  in,  and 
with  Chrift,  their  head  and  reprelentative,  when 
he  arofe  from  the  dead,  and  therefore  before 
they  believe.  The  Lord  Jefus  Chrift  having 
from  eternity  engaged  as  a  furety  for  his  people, 
all  their  fins  were  laid  upon  him,  imputed  to 
him,  and  placed  to  his  account  ;  for  all  which  he 
was  refponfiole  to  divine  juftice,  and,  accordingly 
in  the  fulnels  of  time,  gave  full  fatisfaiftion  for 
them,  by  his  fufferings  and  death  ;  and  having 
done  this,  w'as  acquitted  and  difcharged  :  For, 
as  he  was  put  to  death  in  the  flefli,  he  was  jus¬ 
tified  in  the  fpirit.  Now  as  he  fuffered  and 
died  not  as  a  private  perfon,  but  as  a  public  one, 
fo  he  arofe  again,  and  was  juftified  as  fuch. 
Hence,  when  he  was  juftified,  all  thofe  for  w  horn 

he 


35 


JUSTIFICATION. 

he  made  fatisfaclion,  and  brought  in  a  righteouf- 
nefs,  were  juftified  in  him  ;  which  Teems  to  be  the 
meaning  of  that  fcripture  (a),  “  Who  was  deli¬ 
vered  for  our  offences,  and  was  railed  again  for 
our  juflification.”  This  juflification  of  the  deft, 
at  the  refurredhon  of  Chrifl,  and  upon  the  foot 
of  the  oblation  and  facrifice  already  offered  up, 
is  acknowledged  by  many  excellent  and  judicious 
divines  ;  fome  of  whom,  tho’  they  only  allow  a 
decretive  juflification  from  eternity  ;  yet  affert  a 
real  and  compleat  one  at  the  refurredbon  of 
Chrifl,  on  the  account  of  his  adlual  oblation  and 
facrifice.  Dr.  Ames  fays  f b ),  that  “  The  fen- 
tence  of  juflification  was,  i.  As  it  were  conceived 
in  the  mind  of  God,  by  the  decree  of  juflifying. 
2.  Pronounced  in  Chrifl  our  head,  when  he 
rofe  from  the  dead  ”  The  learned  Hoornbeck, 
fumming  up  the  tenets  of  the  people  called 
Antinomians  in  England ,  takes  notice  of  their 
fentiments  concerning  juflification  ;  andobferves, 
that  the  difference  between  them  and  others, 
“  May  (c)  eafily  be  reconciled,  bv  diftinguifh- 
ing  juflification  into  adlive  and  paflive  ;  the  for¬ 
mer,  fays  he,  is  the  adl  of  God  juflifying  ;  the 
latter  the  termination  and  application  of  it  to 
the  confciences  of  believers.  The  one  was  done 
at  Chrift’s  fatisfadlion  ;  the  other  is,  when  a 
perfon  adlually  believes. ”  And,  a  little  after, 
he  adds  ;  “  juflification  was  deftgned  for  us  from 
all  eternity,  in  the  decree  of  predeflination  $ 

promifed 

{a)  Rom.  iv.  25. 

( b )  Amef.  Medull.  Theolog.  I.  1.  c.  27.  §■<)■ 

( c )  Hoornbeck.  Summ.  Gontrov.  lib.  10.  de  Broyy$= 
iftis,  p.  705. 


36  The  DOCTRINE  of 

promifed  immediately  after  the  fall  ;  wrought 
at  the  death  and  refurreftion  of  Chrift,  (for 
thefe  are  to  be  joined  together,  Rom.  viii.  34  ) 
being,  at  the  one,*merited  by  Chrift,  and,  at 
the  other,  declared  and  ratified  by  God.”  Wit- 
Jius ,  who  engaged  as  a  moderator  in  the  dntino- 
mian  and  Neonomian  controverfies,  moved  here 
in  England,  fays:  “  Chrift  verily  (a)  wasjufti- 
fied,  when  God  raifed  him  from  the  dead,  and 
gave  an  acquittance  for  the  payment  made  by 
Chrift,  and  accepted  by  him  :  And  the  fame 
Chrift  was  raifed  for  our  juftification,  Rom.  iv. 
25.  For  when  he  was  j uttified,  the  eleft  were 
juftified  together  in  him  ;  forafmuch  as  he  was 
their  reprefentative.”  And,  not  to  forget  our 
great  Dr.  Goodwin,  who  oblerves  ( bj ,  that 
*'  At  the  inftant  when  he,  i.  e.  Chrift,  ^rofe, 
God  then  performed  a  farther  aft  of  juftification 
towards  him,  and  us  in  him  ;  admitting  him,  as 
our  advocate,  into  the  aftual  pofleflion  of  jufti¬ 
fication  of  life,  acquitting  him  from  all  thofe  fins 
which  he  had  charged  upon  him.  Therefore, 
we  read,  that  as  Chrift  was  made  fin  in  his  life 
and  death,  fo  that  he  was  juftified  alfo,  1  Tim. 
iii.  16.  And  that  he  fiiould  be  thus  juftified,  is 
not  fpoken  of  him,  abftraftly  confidered  in  him- 
felf,  but  as  he  hath  us  conjoined  in  him,  and  as 
he  connotates  us.”  And,  a  little  after  he  fays  : 
(t  As  when  he  alcended,  we  afcended  with  him, 
(and  therefore  we  are  faidnowto  fit  together  with 
him  in  heavenly  places,  Epb.  ii.  6.)  fo,  when  he 
was  juftified,  we  were  juftified  alfo  in  him.  And, 

as 

(<7)  Witf  Animad.  Irenic.  c.  10.  §.  2. 

(b)  Vol.  IV.  Par.  1.  p.  105,  106. 


JUSTIFICATION.  37 

as  it  may  be  faid,  Adam  condemned  ns  all,  and 
corrupted  us  all  when  he  fell,  fordid  Chrifl  then 
perfect  us  all,  and  God  juftified  us  all,  when  he 
died  and  rofe  again.”  The  famous  Parker  (a) 
calls  it  an  actual  juflification,  both  of  Chrifl  and 
us.  His  words  are  thef^  :  “  Chrifl  is  faid  to  be 
juftified  whenhe  arofe  again,  I  Tim.  iii.  16.  and 
we  to  he  then  juftified  in  him,  Rom.  iv.  25.  be¬ 
came  the  difcliarge,  i.  e.  his  father’s  railing  him 
up,  was  an  affual  jufiification  of  him  from  the 
fins  of  others,  for  which  he  had  Tatisfied,  and 
of  us  from  our  own  fins,  for  which  he  became  a 
furety.”  Thofe  who  afiert  there  is  nojuftifica- 
tion  before  faith,  ought  duly  to  confider  this 
argument-  fo  well  founded  in  fcripture,  and  fo 
agreeable  to  the  fentiments  of  great  and  good 
men.  But, 

5.  I  fhall  go  a  ftep  higher,  and  endeavour  to 
prove,  that  all  the  eledf  of  God  are  juftified  from 
eternity.  When,  I  fay,  theeledlof  God  are  juf¬ 
tified  from  eternity,  I  do  not  think,  that  they  had 
an  aftual  perfonal  exiftenre  from  eternity ,  though 
they  had  a  reprefentalive  one  in  Chrifl;  or  that 
an  actual  payment  of  their  debts,  or  an  adtual 
fatisfaftion  for  their  fiv.s  was  then  made  by  Chrifl, 
though  he  engaged  to  do  it  ;  nor  do  I  intend 
juflification  from  eternity,  in  fuch  a  fenfe  as  to 
let  alide  the  imputation  of  Adam’s  fin  to  the 
condemnation  of  the  elect  in  him  ;  or  to  render 
Chrift’s  bringing  in  an  aflual  righteoufnefs  in 
time  unneceffiry  ;  or  to  make  faith  utelefs  in  our 
juflification,  in  our  own  confidences,  as,  I  hope, 

I 

(a)  Parker,  de  defeenfu  Chriffi  sd  inferos,  1.  3, 
§■  3°-  p-  59- 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


38 

I  Hi  all  fhortly  make  appear  :  Yet,  on  the  other 
hand,  I  mean  more  by  juftificadon  from  eter¬ 
nity,  than  merely  God’s  preference,  or  fore¬ 
knowledge  of  It,  to  whom  all  h  s  ( a )  works 
areknovn,  from  the  beginning  of  the  world, 
ap  aionot ,  from  eternity  more  than  a  mere 
reloiution  and  parpofe  to  jollify  his  eledin  time, 
he  “  calling  ( b )  things  that  are  not,  as  though 
they  were  or,  in  other  words,  more  than  a 
decretive  juftificadon,  as  fotne  divines  call  it; 
who  apprehend  that  God’s  eledcan,  in  no  other 
fenfe,  be  faid  to  be  juftified  from  eternity,  than 
they  may  be  faid  to  be  faniftified  or  glorified  from 
eternity,  becaufe  he  had  decreed  to  fandifv  and 
glorify  them  :  I  fay,  I  mean  more  than  this, 
and  afif-rt,  with  Dr.  Amts ,  that  juftificadon 
“  Is  a  fentence  conceived  in  the  mind  of  God, 
by  the  decree  of  j unification  that  this  is  an  ad 
in  God,  all  whofe  .uft-  in  him  are  eternal  ;  that 
this  is  the  grand  original  fentence  of  juftificadon ; 
of  which  that  pronounced  on  Chrift,  as  our  re- 
prelentative,  when  he  role  from  the  dead,  and 
that  which  is  pronounced  by  the  fpirit  of  God 
in  the  confciences  of  believers,  as  well  as  that 
which  will  be  pronounced  before  men  and  an¬ 
gels,  at  the  general  judgment,  are  no  other 
than  fo  many  repetitions,  or  renewed  declara¬ 
tions  ;  that  this  includes  the  whole  compleat  effe 
of  juftificadon  ;  being,  as  Mr.  Rutherford  (c) 
obferv'es,  “  An  internal  and  immanent  aeft  in 
God,  and  not  tranftent  upon  an  external  fubjed. 

In 

(a)  Acts  xv.  18.  ( b )  Rom.  iv.  17. 

(c)  Rutherford.  Apolog.  Exercitat.  exerc.  1.  c.  2, 
§.  20. 


39 


JUSTIFICATION. 

In  one  word,  I  apprehend,  that  as  God’s  eternal 
decree  of  election  of  perl'ons  to  everlaftihg  life, 
is  the  eternal  eledicn  of  them  ;  fo  God’s  will, 
decree,  or  purpofe,  to  jultify  his  eled  is  the 
eternal  juftificatior,  of  them;  though  his  eternal 
will  to  fandify  them  is  not  an  eternal  fanctifica- 
tion  of  them  ;  becaufe  landification  b  a  wo/k  of 
God’s  grace  upon  us,  and  within  us,  and  fo 
requires  our  perfonal  exigence.  Juftification  is 
an  ad:  of  God’s  grace  towards  us,  is  wholly 
without  us,  entirely  refides  in  the  divii  e  mird, 
and  lies  in  his  ef  imation,  accounting  and  con- 
llituting  us  righteous,  through  the  righteouf. 
nefs  of  his  fon  ;  and  fo  required  neither  the 
adual  exillence  of  Chrift’s  righteoufnef ,  nor 
of  our  perfons,  but  only  that  both  fhould  cer¬ 
tainly  exift  in  time.  For  the  further  confirma¬ 
tion  and  illuftration  of  this  truth,  let  the  fol¬ 
lowing  things  be  obferved. 

(i.)  That  there  is  an  eternal  eledion  of  per¬ 
fons  to  everlafiing  life,  and  that  the  objeds  of 
judication  are  God’s  eled:  “  Who  lhall  (a)  lay 
any  thing  to  the  charge  ol  God’s  eled  ?  it  is  God 
that  juftifieth.”  Now,  if  God’s  eled,  asfuch, 
can  have  nothing  laid  to  their  charge,  but  are, 
by  God,  acquitted,  difeharged,  and  juftified  ; 
and,  if  they  bore  t his  charader  of  eied  from 
eternity,  or  were  chofen  in  Chrift  before  the 
world  began,  then  they  muft  be  acquitted,  dif¬ 
eharged  ,  andjultified  by  God  from  eternity,  fo 
as  nothing  could  be  laid  to  their  charge.  Be- 
fides,  eleding  grace  before  the  world  began, 

put 


(u)  Rom.  viii.  33- 


40 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


put  them  in  Chrift:  <(  He  ( a )  hath  chofen  us  in 
him,  before  the  foundation  of  the 'world.”  And 
if  eleding  grace  then  put  them  in  him,  they  mult 
be  comfidered  as  righteous  in  him  ;  no  man  can 
be  confidered  in  Chrift  as  an  unrighteous  perfon, 
or  as  an  unjuftified,  or  as  in  a  ftate  of  condem¬ 
nation.  And,  I  think,  we  may  be  allowed  to 
argue  an  eternal  j unification  from  an  eternal 
eledion,  fince  eternal  jullification  is  a  branch  of 
it ;  and,  as  fuch,  as  one  ( b )  obferves,  u  Is 
the  father’s  eternal  purpofe  and  agreement  with 
the  fon,  that  the  eled  fhould  be  everlaftingly 
righteous  in  his  fight,  in  the  righteoufnefs  of 
this  dear  fon  of  his  ;  in  which  ad  he  conftitu- 
ted  and  ordained  them  fo  to  be  And  this  ad, 
as  the  fame  excellent  perfon  obferves  (c),  is  no 
other  than  “  fetting  apart  the  eled  alone  to  be 
partakers  of  Chrift’s  righteoufnefs,  and  fetting 
apart  Chrift’s  righteouinefs  for  the  eled  only.” 
I  think,  we  may  fafely  conclude,  that  if  there 
is  an  eternal  eledion  of  perfons  in  Chrift,  there 
mult  be  an  eternal  acceptance  and  juftificarion  of 
them  in  him  ;  fince,  as  he  always  was  the  beloved 
of  his  father,  in  whom  he  is  ever  well  pleafed, 
fo  he  always  has  gracioufly  accepted  cf  and  is 
well  pleafed  with  all  his  eled  in  him. 

(2.)  That  there  was,  from  all  eternity,  a 
covenant  of  grace  and  peace  made  between  the 
father  and  the  fon,  oil  the  account  of  thefe 
eled  perfons;  when  all  the  bleflings  of  grace, 

and 

{a)  Eph.  i.  4- 

( b )  Mr.  Davis,  in  his  letter  to  Mr.  Beart ,  publiflied 
in  Mr.  Maurice's  Monuments  of  Mercy,  p.  S3. 

(c)  Ibid.  p.  85. 


JUSTIFICATION.  4t 

and  promifes  cf  life,  provided  and  fecured  in 
that  covenant,  were  put  into  the  hands  ol  Jefus 
Chrift  for  his  people  ;  and,  though  they  had 
then  no  perfonal  or  actual  ex'ftence,  yet  they 
had  a  reprefentative  being  in  Chrift,  in  whcm 
they  were  then  bleflfed  (a)  with  a’l  fpiritual 
bleflings.”  And,  if  with  all  fpiritual  bleflings, 
then  with  this  of  juftification  ;  which  was  no 
inconfiderable  part  of  that  “  grace  ( b )  which 
was  given  us  in  Chrift  Jefus,  before  the  world 
began.”  But  I  cannot  exprefs  this  better  than 
in  the  words  of  Dr.  Gooawin ,  who,  fpeaking  of 
the  date  of  juftification,  fays  (c)  :  “  The  fir  ft; 
progrefs,  or  ftep,  was  at  the  firft  covenant- 
making  and  linking  of  the  bargain  from  all 
eternity:  We  may  fay,  of  a!!  fpiritual  bleflings 
in  Chrift,  what  is  faid  of  Chrift,  that  “  his 
goings  forth  are  from  everlafting.”  Juftified 
then  we  were,  when  firft  eletted,  though  not 
in  our  own  perfons,  yet  in  our  head,  as  he  had 
our  perfons  then  given  him,  and  we  came  to 
have  a  being  and  intereft  in  him  :  “  You  are  in 
Chrift,”  (faith  the  apoftle)  and  fo  we  had 
the  promife  made  of  all  fpiritual  bleflings  in 
him,  and  he  took  all  the  deeds  of  all  in  our 
name  ;  fo  in  Chrift  we  were  b’.effed  with  all  fpi- 
ritual  bleflings,  Eph.  i.  3.  As  we  are  blelfed 
with  all  other,  fo  with  this  alfo,  that  we  were 
juftified  then  in  Chrift.  To  this  purpofe  is  that 
place,  Rom.  viii.  30.  where  he  fpeaks  of  all 
thofe  bleflings  which  are  applied  to  us  after  re¬ 
demption,  as  calling,  juftification,  glorification, 
F  as 

(a)  Eph.  i.  3.  ( b )  2  Tim.  i,  9.  (c)  V0I.4. 

Par.  i.  p.  104,  105. 


42 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


as  of  things  already  paft  and  done,  even  then 
when  he  did  predeftinate  us  :  Whom  he  hath 
predeftinated,  them  he  hath  called,  them  he 
hath  jufiified,  them  he  hath  glorified.  He  fpeaks 
it  as  in  the  time  paft;  neither  fpeaks  he  thus  of 
thefe  blefiings  as  paft,  {imply  in  regard  of  that 
prefence,  in  which  all  things  ftand  before  him 
from  eternity ;  all  things  paft,  prefent  and  to 
come,  being  to  him  as  prefent:  Nor  doth  he 
fpeak  it  only  in  regard  of  a  refolution,  or  pur- 
pofe,  taken  up  to  call  and  juftify,  he  calling  j 
things  that  are  not  as  though  they  were,  Rom. 
iv.  1 7.  For  “  thus  it  may  be  faid  of  all  his 
other  works  towards  the  creatures  in  common, 
that  he  hath  created  and  preferved  them  from 
everlafting  :  Rut  in  a  more  fpecial  relation  are 
thefe  blefiings  decreed  faid  to  have  been  be¬ 
llowed,  becaufe,  though  they  exifted  not  in 
themltlves,  yet  they  exifted  really  in  a  head 
that  reprefented  them  and  us,  who  was  by  to 
anfwer  for  them,  and  to  undertake  for  them, 
which  other  creatures  could  not  do ;  and  there 
was  an  a&ual  donation  and  receiving  all  thefe 
for  us  (as  truly  as  a  feoffee  in  truft  may  take 
Ends  for  one  unborn)  by  virtue  of  a  covenant 
made  with  Chrift  ;  whereby  Chrift  had  all  our 
fins  imputed  to  him,  and  fo  taken  off  from  11s,  ! 
Chrift  having  then  covenanted  to  take  all  our 
fins  upon  him,  when  he  took  our  perfons  to  be 
his  ;  and  God  having  covenanted  not  to  impute 
fin  unto  us,  but  to  look  at  him  for  the  payment 
of  all,  and  at  us  as  difcharged.  Of  this  feems 
that  place,  2  Cor.  v.  19.  evidently  to  fpeak,  as 
importing  that  everlafting  tranfaiftion  :  “  God 

was 


JUSTIFICATION.  43 

was  in  Chrift,  reconciling  the  world  unto  him- 
felf,  not  imputing  their  trefpaffes  to  them/' 
i.  e.  not  imputing  them  then  when  he  was  re¬ 
conciling  us  unto  himfelf  in  Chrift.  So  as  then 
God  told  Chrift,  as  it  were,  (for  it  was  a  real 
covenant)  that  he  would  look  for  his  debt  and 
fatisfattion  of  him,  and  that  he  did  let  the  fin- 
ners  go  free  ;  and  fo  they  are,  in  this  refpedt, 
juftified  from  all  eternity.  And,  indeed,  if  the 
promife  of  lite  was  then  given  us,  (as  the  apof- 
tle  Paul fpeaks,  Tit.  i.  2.)  then  alfo juftification 
of  life,  without  which  we  could  not  come  to 
life.  Yet  this  is  but  the  inchoation,  though  it 
be  an  eftating  us  into  the  whole  tenure  of  life.” 

(3.)  Chrift  was  fet  up  from  everlafting,  as 
the  mediator  of  this  covenant  :  His  goings  forth, 
and  a&ing  therein,  on  the  behalf  of  his  people, 
were  of  old,  from  everlafting.  He  then  en¬ 
gaged  to  be  a  furety  for  them,  and  v  as  accepted 
of  by  God  the  Father  as  fuch ;  who  thencefor¬ 
ward,  to  ufe  the  dodtor’s  words,  juft  now  cited, 
looked  for  his  debt,  and  expected  fatisfa&ion  of 
him,  and  let  the  finners  go  free,  for  whom  he 
engaged.  Looking  at  him  for  the  payment, 
he  looked  at  them  as  difcharged  ;  and  they  were 
fo  in  his  eternal  mind,  and,  in  this  rcfpedt, 
were  juftified  from  eternity.  And,  indeed,  ?tis 
a  rule  that  will  hold  good,  “  That  as  foon  as 
any  one  (a)  becomes  a  furety  for  another,  the 
other  is  immediately  freed,  if  the  furety  be 
accepted:”  which  is  the  cafe  here.  And  it  is 

certainly 

(a)  Quia  fimul  ac  vas  aliquis  fit  pro  alte  ro,  alter 
ftatim  liberatur,  fivasifte  acceptatur.  Maccov,  Theol. 
Quaeft.  loc.  31.  Quaelt.  6, 


44 


The  DOCTRINE  or 


certainly  moft  prudential,  when  a  man  has  a  bad 
debt,  and  has  good  fecurity  for  it,  to  have  his 
eye  upon  the  bondfman  or  furety  for  payment, 
and  not  upon  the  principal  debtor,  who  will 
never  be  able  to  pay  him. 

(4  )  That  as  foon  as  Chrift  became  a  furety, 
the  lias  of  all  thofe  perfons,  for  whom  he  be¬ 
came  a  furety,  were  reckoned  and  accounted  to 
him  ;  and,  if  accounted  to  him,  then  not  to 
them;  if  they  were  laid  to  his  charge,  then 
not  to  theirs  ;  and  if  he  was  anfwerable  for 
them,  then  they  were  difcharged  from  them. 
If  there  was  an  imputation  of  them  to  him, 
then  there  mud  be  a  non-imputation  of  ’em  to 
them ;  which  the  apoftle  plainly  intimates, 
when  he  fays  (a),  “  God  was  in  Chrift,  /.  e, 
from  everlafting,  reconciling  the  world  unto 
himfelf,  not  imputing  their  trefpafles  unto 
them.”  JVit('ius  ( bj ,  citing  this  text  of  fcrip- 
ture,  fays  :  Cl  God  hath  reconciled  the  whole 
world  of  his  cleft  together  to  himfelf,  and  hath 
declared,  that  he  will  not  impute  their  tref¬ 
pafles  to  them,  and  thatbecaule  of  theconfum- 
mate  fatisfaftion  of  Chrift,  2  Cor.  v.  19.  where¬ 
fore,  fays  he,  I  am  of  opinion,  that  this  aft  of 
God  may  be  called  the  general  juftification  of 
the  cleft.”  Nor  ought  it  to  be  thought  ftrange, 
foreign,  or  far  fetched,  that  the  juftification  of 
God’s  people  is  inferred  from  the  imputation  of 
their  fins  to  Chrift,  and  the  non-imputation  of 
them  to  them  ;  fince  the  apoftle  Paul  in  Rorri. 
iv.  6,  7,  8,  has  fo  manifeftly  deduced,  and 

ftrongly 

(a)  2  Cor.  v,  19. 

lb)  Witf.  Animadv.  Irenic.  c.  ro.  §.  2. 


45 


JUSTIFICATION. 

ftrongly  concluded  the  imputation  of  righteouf- 
nefs,  which  is  the  ra'io  formalis  ol  juftification, 
f  i  om  the  non- imputation  of  fin,  and  remiflion 
of  it. 

(5.)  That  God  from  eternity  willed  to  punifh 
fin,  not  in  the  perfons  of  the  eleft,  but  in  the 
perfon  of  Chrift,  their  furety.  That  it  is  the 
will  of  God  to  punfh  fin,  not  in  his  people  but 
in  his  fon,  it  plain  and  manifcft,  from  his  <l  fet- 
ting  him  up  (a)”  in  his  purpofe,  “  to  be  a  pro¬ 
pitiation  for  their  fins;”  from  his  fending  him 
forth  in  the  likenefs  of  finful  flefh,  to  condemn 
fin  in  the  flefh  ;  and  from  his  being  made  both 
fin  and  a  curfe  for  them,  that  they  might  be 
made  the  righteoufuefs  of  God  in  him.  This 
will  was  notified  to  man,  quickly  after  the  fall, 
though  it  did  not  then  begin,  for  no  new  will 
can  arife  in  God  ;  he  wills  nothing  in  time,  but 
what  he  willed  from  eternity.  If  it  was  God’s 
eternal  will  not  to  punifh  fin  in  his  people,  but 
in  his  fon,  then  they  were  eternally  difcharged, 
acquitted  from  fin,  and  fecured  from  everlalting 
wrath  and  deftru&ion ;  and,  if  they  were  eter¬ 
nally  difcharged  from  fin,  and  freed  from  punilh- 
tnent,  they  were  eternally  juftified.  Dr .  > -wiffic 
makes  the  very  quiddity,  or  offence,  of  juftifi¬ 
cation  and  remiflion  of  fins,  which  he  takes  to 
be  the  fame  to  lie  in  God’s  will  not  to  punifh. 
His  Words  are  thefe  :  “  Forgivenefs  (b)  of  fin, 

if 

(a)  Rom  Hi.  75.  Proztheto,  fore-ordained. 

(b)  Twijf.  Vindicia  Gratiae,  1.  r.  par.  2.  §■  25. 
p.  194.  To  -which  Mr.  Eyres  agrees ,  in  his  Free  Jufli- 
fication  of  a  Sinner,  &c.  p.  89,91.  -where  he  gives  thefe 

two  reafons  for  it. - 1 .  Becauje  it  agrees  wiih  the 

definition  the  pfalmifi  and  apoftle  give  of  juftification , 


a6  The  DOCTRINE  of 

if  you  regard  the  quiddity  of  it,  is  r,o  other  than 
a  negation  of  pumlhment,  or  a  will  not  to  pu- 
nilh  :  Be  it  therefore,  that  to  forgive  fin  is  no 
other  than  to  will  not  te  punifh  ;  why,  this  will 
not  to  punifh,  as  it  is  an  immanent  ad  in  God, 
was  from  eternity. ” 

(6.)  That  the  faints  under  the  Old  Teflament 
were  juftified  by  the  fame  righteoufnefs  of  Chriit, 
as  the  faints  under  the  New  ;  and  that  before  the 
oblation,  or  facrifice,  wasadually  offered  up,  or 
the  everlafting  righteoufnefs  wasadually  brought 
in  ;  before  an  adual  payment  of  debts  was  made, or 
an  adual  fathfadion  for  fins  given.  For  Chrift’s 
blood,  when  it  was  llied,  was  Hied  (<  for  the 
remiflion  of  fins  that  were  pad  (a)  And  his 
death  was  “  for  the  redemption  of  tranfgreffions 
that  were  under  the  firft  teftament.”  Now  if 
God  could,  and  did,  adually  juffify  fome,  ha¬ 
ving  taken  his  Ion’s  word  as  th^ir  furety,  upon 
a  view  of  his  future  righteoufnefs,  three  or 
four  thoufand  years  before  this  righteoufnefs 
wasadually  wrought  out;  why  could  he  not, 
and  why  may  it  not  be  thought  that  he  did,  jurtify 
all  his  eled  from  eternity,  viewing  the  fame 
future  righteoufnefs  of  Cbrift,  which  he  had 
engaged  to  work  out  for  them,  and  which  he 
knew  full  well  he  would  work  out ;  fince,  tho’ 
they  had  not  then  an  adual,  yet  they  had  a 

reprefentative 

Pfal.  xxxii.  r,  2.  Rom.  iv.  6,  7. - 2.  Becaufe  by 

it  God's  eled  are  acquitted  and  difeharged  from  their 
Jins,  and  fecured  from  wrath  and  dejfrudion.  Mr, 
Rutherford  ferns  to  be  of  the  Jame  mind,  Exerckat- 
Apolog.  exerc.  1.  c.  2.  §.  20- 

(a)  Rom.  iii  25,  26.  Heb.  ix.  ij. 


JUSTIFICATION.  47 

renrefientative  being  in  Chrift  their  head  ?  But 
I  proceed, 

Secondly ,  To  fhew  that  the juhification,  which 
is  by,  at,  or  upon  believing,  is  not  properly 
juflilica  ion,  but  the  manifehation  of  it.  The 
phrafe  we  frequently  meet  with  in  fcripture,  of 
being  “  juhified  by  faith,”  muff  be  underflood 
either  in  a  proper  or  in  an  improper  fenfe  : 
1  hofe  who  underhand  it  in  a  proper  fenfe, 
make  the  credere,  or  the  a«5l  of  faith,  to  be  im¬ 
puted  for  juhification  ;  or,  in  other  words,  to 
be  the  maiter  of  it ;  or  to  be  accepted  of  God 
in  the  room  of  a  legal  righteoufnefs  :  '1  his  is 
the  way  the  Papjts  (a),  Socinians  (b),  and 
Remon/tr  ants  take.  On  the  other  hand,  found 
Protehant  divines  underhand  the  phrafe  in  an 
improper,  tropical,  or  metonymical  lenfe';  and 
fay,  that  faith  intends  neither  the  habit,  nor 
the  ad  of  faith  ;  becaitfe  then  our  juftification 
would  be  placed  in  that  which  is  a  part,  and  a 
principal  part  of  fandification  ;  nor  would  there 
be  a  proper  antithefts,  or  oppofition,  between 
faith  and  works,  in  thebufinel’s  of  juftification  : 
Therefore  by  faith  they  underhand,  and  very 
rightly,  the  otjed  of  faith,  as  in  G<J.  iii.  23. 
“  But  before  faith  came,  6r.”  i.  e.  before 
Chrih,  the  objed  of  faith,  came  :  So  that  we 
may  be  fa’d  to  be  juftified  by  faith  objedivelv, 
the  ad  of  faith  being  put  for  the  objed  of  it ; 
the  reafen  of  which  is,  becaufe’tis  to  faith  that 

this 

(a)  Vid.  Rivet.  Summ.  Controv.  Tra£t.  4.  Quaefh 
2.  Amef.  Bellarmin.  Enerv.  Tom.  IV.  i.  6.  cap.  i. 

(b)  Vid.  Peltii.  Harmon.  Remonltraut.  &  Sodn. 

p.  i  5 1 ,  152- 


48  The  DOCTRINE  of 

this  objeft  is  revealed.  Faith  is  the  recipient  of 
it  ;  ’tis  the  grace  by  which  the  foul  lays  hold 
on,  apprehends.  and  embraces  Chrift’s  righte- 
ouineis,  as  its  j unifying  righteoufnefs  before 
God  So  that  when  we  are  faid  to  be  juliified 
by  faith,  it  is  to  be  underltooJ  not  in  a  proper, 
but  in  an  improper,  tropical,  or  metonymical 
fcnft  ;  faith  being,  not  our  juftification  itfelf, 
but  the  evidence  of  it.  For, 

Faith  adds  nothing  to  the  <Jfe ,  but  to  the 
bene  ejjt  of  juftification.  |  unification  is  a  com- 
pleat  act  in  God’s  eternal  mind,  without  the 
bei’  g  cr  corfideration  of  faith  ;  that  is  to  fay, 
God  does  not  juftify  any  becaufe  they  believe  in 
Chrift,  nor  on  the  forelight  of  their  future 
faith  in  him  A  man  is  not  more  juftified  after 
faith,  thaw  he  is  before  faith  in  God’s  account  ; 
and,  after  he  has  believed,  his  juftification  don’t 
depend  upon  h;s  afts  of  faith  ;  for  though 
“  we  (a)  believe  not  yet  he  abides  faithful” 
to  his  covenant-eng.  gements  with  his  fon. 
Faith,  indeed,  is  of  great  ufe  for  our  comfort¬ 
able  apprehenfion  of  it;  without  this  grace  we 
neither  know,  nor  can  claim,  our  intereft  in  it; 
nor  enjoy  that  peace  of  confcience,  which  is  the 
happy  refult  of  it.  but, 

Faith  has  fto  manner  of  cafual  influence  upon 
our  juft  fication.  It  is  not  the  impulfive,  or 
moving  caufe  of  it,  lor  that  is  the  gi  ace  of  God  ; 
nor  the  efficient  caufe  of  it,  for  it  is  God  that 
juftifies  ;  nor  is  it  the  matter  of  it,  for  that  is 
the  obtdience  and  blood  of  Chrift;  nor  is  it  an 

iaftrument 


{( i \  2  Tim.  ii.  13. 


JUSTIFICATION.  49 

inftrument,  or  inftrumental  caufe  of  it,  which 
is  no  other  than  a  lefs  principal  efficient  caufe. 
For,  as  Mr.  Baxter  himfelf  well  argues  (a)  : 
“  If  faith  be  the  iullrument  of  our  juftifkation, 
it  is  the  inftrument  either  of  God,  or  man. 
Not  of  man,  for  juftifkation  is  God’s  a<ft  ;  he  is 
the  foie  juftifier,  hom.  iii.  1 6.  man  doth  not 
juftify  himfelf :  Nor  of  God,  for  it  is  not  God 
that  believeth.”  Nor  is  it  cauja  Jine  qua  non , 
or  that  without  which  a  man  cannot  be  juftified 
in  the  fight  of  God.  Fur,  I  hope,  I  have 
already  proved,  that  all  God’s  ele<ft  are  juftified 
in  his  fight,  and  in  his  account,  before  faith ; 
and  if  before  faith,  then  without  it.  Befides, 
all  elefl  infants,  dying  in  infancy,  are  com- 
pleatly  juftified,  who  are  not  capable  of  the 
credere ,  or  adf  of  believing  in  Chrift,  whatever 
may  be  faid  for  the  habit  of  faith  in  them. 

Faith  is  the  fenfe,  perception,  and  evidence 
of  our  juftifkation.  Chrift’s  righteoufnefs,  as 
juftifying,  is  “  revealed  from  fn ith  to  faith.” 
It  is  that  grace  whereby  the  foul,  in  the  light 
of  the  divine  fpirit,  beholds  a  compleac  righte¬ 
oufnefs  in  Chrift,  having  feen  its  guilt,  pollu¬ 
tion,  and  mifery  ;  when  it  is  enabled  to  re¬ 
nounce  its  own  righteoufnefs,  and  fubinit  to  the 
righteoufnefs  of  Chrift,  which  it  puts  on  by 
faith,  as  its  garment  of  juftifkation,  which  it 
rejoices  in,  and  gives  him  the  glory  of ;  the  fpi¬ 
rit  of  God  bearing  witnefs  with  his  fpirit,  that 
he  is  a  juftified  perfon.  And  fo  he  comes  to  be 
evidently  and  declaratively  “  juftified  in  the 
G  name 

(a)  Aphorifm.  56.  See  Eyre’s  Free  Jufiification} 
&c.  p.  69.  Ed.  3.' 


name  of  the  Lord  Jefus,  and  by  the  fpirit  of  our 
God.” 

Now  neither  the  manifeftation  of  juftification 
to  our  confciences  by  the  fpirit  of  God  ;  nor  our 
fenie  and  perception  of  it  by  faith,  are  properly 
our  jutfification  :  For  they  both  relate  to  fome 
prior  act  or  fentence,  wherein  the  very  effence 
of  the  thing  lies.  The  pardon  of  a  criminal  is 
compleat,  when  fxgned  and  fealed  by  the  king. 
Neither  the  aft  of  bringing  it  to  the  criminal, 
nor  his  aft  of  receiving  it,  is  his  pardon  ;  tho’ 
both  are  neceflary  to  his  knowledge  of  it,  and  to 
his  pleading  ic  in  court,  as  well  as  to  the  peace, 
quiet,  and  fatisfaftion  of  his  mind.  When  a 
man  is  juftified  and  acquitted  in  court,  and  hath 
the  copy  of  his  indiftment  given  him,  who  will 
fay  the  copy  of  his  indiftment  is  his  juftification 
or  acquittance,  and  not  the  judgment  and  aft 
of  the  court?  por  a  man  may  be  truly  and  le¬ 
gally  acquitted,  and  yet  not  have  the  copy  of 
his  indictment.  For  a  man  to  have  the  copy  of 
his  indiftment  may  be  of  great  fervice  in  fome 
cafes,  and  be  a  good  teltimonial  of  bis  acquit¬ 
tance  ;  but  it  is  not  the  thing  itfelf.  Juft  fo, 
neither  the  intimation  of  the  fentence  of  jufti- 
fication,  made  to  our  confciences  by  the  fpirit 
of  God  ;  nor  our  l'enfe  and  perception  of  it  by 
faith,  fo  intimated,  is,  ftriftly  and  properly 
fpeaking,  our  juftification  :  For,  if  they  were, 
then  believers  themfelves  might  be  without  it, 
fince  they  may  be  without  thofe  intimations  of 
the  blefied  ipirit,  and  a  comfortable  fenfe  and 
perception  of  their  juftification  by  faith,  which 

feems 


JUSTIFICATION.  5* 

feemstobe  the  cafe  of  David,  when  hefaidfaj  ; 
“  Reftore  unto  me  the  joy  of  thy  falvation,  and 
uphold  me  with  thy  free  fpirit.’, 

What  I  have  now  faid,  I  think  perfeftly 
agrees  not  only  with  the  fcriptures  of  truth, 
but  with  what  fome  of  the  bell  and  founded: 
divines  have  faid  on  this  fubjeft.  I  have  already 
obferved  (b),  that  Dr.  Ames  fays,  that  “  The 
teftimony  of  the  fpirit  is  not  fo  properly  juftifi¬ 
cation.  as  it  is  an  aftual  perception  of  it  before 
granted.”  As  alfo  what  the  judicious  Pemble  (c), 
has  aflerted,  when,  fpeaking  of  juftification  in 
foro  confcient'ue,  he  fays  :  It  is  “  hut  the  reve¬ 
lation  and  certain  declara'ion  of  God’s  former 
fecret  aft  of  accepting  Chrift’s  righteoiifnefs  to 
our  juftification.”  Befides  thefe,  give  me  leave 
to  add  one  or  two  teftimonies  more.  Maccovius , 
fpeaking  of  the  Arminian  tenet,  “  That  we  are 
not  juftified  before  we  believe,”  obferves,  that 
this  miftake  arifes  from  their  not  allowing  the 
diftinftion  of  aftive  and  paflive  juftification, 
which  he  proves  thus  :  u  It  is  faid  of  God 
that  he  juftifieth,  Rom.  iv.  5.  and  of  us,  that 
we  are  juftified,  Chap.  v.  Not  that  there  is  a 
twofold  juftification  ;  for  paflive  juftification, 
fays  he,  is  improperly  called  juftification  (a), 
and  is  only  the  fenfe  of  aftive  juftification.” 
Mr.  Rutherford  fays,  that  u  Juftification  taken 
paflively,  or  in  the  termination  of  it,  is  to  de¬ 
clare  a  man  both  living,  and  aftually  believing, 
righteous,  by  a  judicial  aft,  terminated  upon 

the 

(a)  Pfal.  li.  12.  ( b )  See  pug.  12.  (c)  See  pag.  31, 

( d )  Rhaetorfort ,  Exercitat.  Apolog.  exerc.  1.  c,  3, 
5  20. 


52 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


the  confcience  of  a  guilty  Tinner,  cited  before 
the  tribunal  of  God,  and  convicted  of  Tin  ;  in 
which  law-fuit  the  Tinner  is  abfolved,  and  actu¬ 
ally  perceives  and  apprehends  the  declared  ab- 
Tolution,  and  by  a  fiducial  flay  relies  on  Chrift, 
now  reaching  out  the  manifeftation  of  this  fen- 
tence  :  Yet,  fays  he,  juftification  in  this  form  of 
Tpeech,  fo  uftjal  in  the  fcriptures,  does  not  fup- 
pofe  any  new  will  in  God,  beginning  in  time, 
as  the  Arminians  with  their  own  Socinus  alfert ; 
but  an  intimation  of  God’s  eternal  will,  now 
made  to  the  confcience.”  I’ll  conclude  this 
head  with  the  words  of  Dr.  Twife  fa):  u  Juf¬ 
tification  and  abfolution,  as  they  fignify  an  im¬ 
manent  aCt  of  the  divine  will,  are  from  eternity  : 
But  the  external  notification  of  the  Tame  will 
in  manner  of  a  judicial  and  forenfic  abfolution, 
which  is  made  by  the  word  and  fpirit,  at  the 
tribunal  of  every  one’s  confcience,  is  that  im¬ 
putation  of  Chrift’s  righteoufnefs,  remifiion  of 
Tins,  juftification,  and  abfolution,  which  follow 
faith.  For  hereupon  abfolution  is  pronounced, 
as  it  were  by  the  mouth  of  a  judge,  and  fo  that 
internal  purpofe  of  abfolving,  which  was  from 
eternity,  is  made  manifeft.”  But  I  fhall  now 
go  on. 

Thirdly,  To  confider  the  objections  which  are 
made  againft  this  doCtrine. 

i.  It  is  objected,  thatperfons  cannot  be  jtifti- 
fied  before  they  exift  ;  they  muft  be,  before  they 
can  be  juftified  :  And  this  is  ftrengthened  with 
iorne  old  trite  philofophical  maxims:  As,  Non 

entis 

( a )  Twijf,  Vindiciae  Gratiae,  1.  i.  par.  2.  §  25. 
p.  197. 


JUSTIFICATION.  53 

e  nl'is  mV  a  funt  accidentia,  nulla  ojfcffiones  ;  accu 
dentis  ejfe,  eft  in  ejfe ;  “  No  acciden  ts  can  be 
predicated  of  a  non  entity  ;  no  affections  can  be 
afcribed  to  it,  <bc.”  To  which  I  anfwer,  with 
Maccovius  faj,  That  this  is  true  of  nonentities, 
that  have  neither  an  ejfe  aflu,  nor  an  ejfe  cogni- 
turn  ;  that  hate  neither  an  aftual  being,  nor  is 
it  certain,  or  known,  that  they  fhall  have  any 
future  being.  But  God’s  eleft,  though  they 
have  not  an  Jfe  adlu,  an  aftual  being  from  eter¬ 
nity,  yet  they  have  an  ejfe  cognitum  :  It  is  cer¬ 
tain,  by  the  prefcience  and  fore-knowledge  of 
!  God,  that  they  shall  have  one  ;  for  “  known 
|  unto  G  d  (b)  are  all  his  works  from  eternity.” 
♦  Befides,  they  have  an  efe  rcprefentativum,  a 
representative  being  in  C  hrift  ;  which  is  more 
than  other  creatures  have,  whofe  future  ex- 
iftencies  are  certain  ;  and  therefore  they  were 
“  bleffed  with  all  Spiritual  bleffmgs  in  Chrift,. 
before  the  foundation  of  the  world  (c)  ;  and 
had  grace  given  them  in  Chriii  before  the  world 
'began  ( d ).”  Moreover,  “  Juftification  is  a 
moral  aft  (e),  which  does  not  require  the  pre- 
fent  exiftence  of  the  fubjeft;  it  is  enough,  that 
it  fhall  exift  fome  time  or  other.’’  It  is,  indeed, 
granted,  that  juftification  taken  paffively,  as  it 
is  declared  to,  and  pafTes  upon  the  con  Science, 
.  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  is  received  by  faith  ; 
that  this  requires  the  nftual  exiftence  of  the 
fubjeft,  on  whom  it  terminates  :  But  we  are 
not  Speaking  of  juftification  as  a  tranfient,  but 

s$ 

(a)  Loc.  Comraun.  c.  69.  p.  609.  ( b )  Afts  xv.  i8» 

(c)  Eph.  i  3.  ( d )  2  Tim.  i.  9. 

( e )  Maccov.  Theolog.  Quash,  loc.  31. 


54 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


as  an  immanent  aft ;  not  as  received  by  us,  but 
as  it  is  in  Gqd,  who  juftifies. 

2.  It  is  objefted,  that  if  God’s  eleft  are  jufti- 
fied  from  eternity,  then  they  were  not  only 
juftified  before  they  themfelves  exifted,  but  alio 
from  that  which,  as  yet,  was  not  committed, 
i.  e.  fin;  and  it  feems  abfurd  to  fay,  that  they 
are  juftified  from  fins,  before  they  were  com¬ 
mitted,  or  any  charge  was  brought  againft  them 
for  fm.  To  which  I  anfwer  :  It  is  no  more 
abfurd  to  fay,  that  God’s  eleft  are  juftified  from 
their  fins  before  they  were  committed,  than  it 
is  to  fay,  that  their  fins  were  imputed  toChrift, 
and  laid  upon  him,  and  he  was  delivered  up  to 
juftice,  and  died  for  them,  before  they  were 
committed.  And  as  this  will  not  be  denied  by 
thofe,  who  believe  the  fubftitution  of  Chrift  in 
the  room  and  ftead  of  the  eleft,  the  imputation 
of  their  fins  to  him,  and  his  plenary  fatisfaftion 
to  divine  juftice  for  them,  by  his  fufferings  and 
death  ;  fo  it  is  an  anfwer  which  ought  to  be 
fatisfaftory  to  them. 

3.  ’Tis  fuggefted  (a),  “  That  juftification, 
ftriftly  fpeaking,  can’t  be  faid  to  be  from  eter¬ 
nity,  becaufe  the  decree  of  juftification  is  one 
thing,  and  juftification  itfelf  another;  even  as 
God’s  will  to  fave  and  fanftifv  is  one  thing,  and 
falvation  and  fanftification  itfelf  another  ;  and 
therefore,  though  the  decree  is  from  eternity, 
the  thing  itfelf  is  not.”  To  which  I  reply  : 
That  as  God’s  decree  to  eleft  certain  perfons  to 
everlafting  life  and  falvation,  is  his  eleftion  of 

them 

(a)  Turret  in.  Inftitut  Theolog.  Tom  II.  loc.  16. 
Quaeft.  9.  §  3. 


JUSTIFICATION.  55 

them  to  everlafting  life  and  falvation  ;  fo  his 
decree,  will  and  purpofe  to  juftify  any,  is  his  juf- 
tification  of  them  :  For  by  or  through  the  decree 
of  j uftification,  as  Dr.  Ames  exprelles  it,  (which 
was  before  obferved  {a)  the  fentence  of  juftifica- 
tion  was  conceived  in  God’s  mind  ;  and  being 
there  conceived,  was  compleat  and  perfect.  God’s 
will  not  to  impute  fin  to  his  people,  is  the  non¬ 
imputation  of  it  to  them  ;  and  his  will  to  impute 
Chrift’s  righteoulhefs,  is  the  imputation  of  it 
to  them.  The  fame  may  be  faid  of  all  God’s 
immanent  adts  of  grace  concerning  us ;  fuch  as 
eledbion,  Which  are  entirely  within  him- 

felf,  and  do  not  require  that  the  objedt  lhould 
exifl ;  only  that  it  certainly  fiiall  exift  forne  time 
*  or  other:  But  this  can’t  be  faid  of  tranfient 
f  adts,  which  produce  a  real,  phyfical  and  inhe¬ 
rent  change  upon  the  fubjedt.  ’Tis  one  thing 
for  God  to  will  to  adt  an  adt  of  grace  concerning 
us,  and  another  thing  to  will  to  work  a  work  of 
grace  in  us.  God’s  will,  in  the  former  in- 
ftance,  is  his  adt ;  in  the  latter  it  is  not :  W  here- 
*fore,  though  God’s  will  to  juitify  is  juftification 
itfelf,  becaufe  juftification  is  a  compleat  adt  in 
his  eternal  mind  without  us ;  yet  his  will  to 
fandtify  is  not  fandtification,  becaufe  this  is  a  work 
wrought  in  us.  Hence  it  appears,  that  there 
is  not  the  fame  reafon  to  fay,  we  were  created, 
called,  fandtified,  or  glorified  from  eternity  ;  as 
to  fay,  that  we  were  jultified  from  eternity.  Be¬ 
caufe,  as  Mr.  Eyres  obferves  (/)  :  <e  Thele 
import  an  inherent  change  in  the  perl'on  created, 

called 

■  (a)  See  pag.  35,  38. 

( b )  Free  purification ,  Si c.  p.  94. 


56  The  DOCTRINE  of 

called,  glorified  ;  which  forgivenefs  does  nor, 
ic  being  perfect  and  compleat  in  the  mind  of 
God  By  which  he  means  jollification. 

4.  It  is  obferved,  That  the  apoltle  Paul ,  in 
recounting  the  feveral  blellings  of  divine  grace, 
in  his  famous  chain  of  falvation,  Rom.  viii.  30. 
places  vocation  before  juflification,  as  fomething 
antecedent  to  it;  from  whence  ’tis  concluded, 
that  vocation  is,  in  order  of  time,  before  jufli¬ 
fication.  To  which  I  reply  :  That  the  order  of 
things  is  frequently  inverted  in  fcripture.  The 
y?ws  have  a  faying,  that  “  There  is  neither  i 
fh-ft  nor  lait  in  the  law.”  i.  e.  it  does  not  always  , 
obferve  to  put  that  firlt  which  isfirit;  and  that 
laft  which  is  laft ;  but  Irequently  changes  the  | 
order  ;  fo  that  nothing  ltri£tly  is  to  be  concluded  j 
Irom  thence  And  as  this  is  obvious  in  the  law, 
and  in  the  other  writings  of  the  Old  Tellament, 
fo  it  is  in  the  books  of  the  New  Tellament, 
where  ’tis  enfy  to  obferve,  that  the  order  of 
the  three  perfons  in  the  Trinity  is  not  always 
kept  to.  Sometimes  the  Son  is  placed  before 
the  Father,  and  fometiines  the  Holy  Spirit  is 
mentioned  before  the  faiher  and  the  Ion.  And 
though  this  may  well  exprefs  the  equality  there 
is  bet  ween  them;  yet  it  ought  not  to  be  urged, 
to  confound  the  order  among  them.  But,  to 
confider  the  inltance  of  vocation  before  11s  :  1 
Let  it  be  obferved,  that  this  is  fometimes  placed 
before  election,  as  in  2  Pet.  i.  10.  “  Make  your 
calling  and  election  fure.”  And  yet  none  but 
an  A'minian,  and  fcarcely  fuch  an  one,  will 
infer  from  hence,  that  vocation,  or  calling,  is 
before  election.  And,  on  the  other  hand,  fal-l  j 

vation  ,  * 

I  ft 


JUSTIFICATION.  57 

vation  is  placed  before  vocation,  2  Tim.  i.  9. 
“  Who  hath  faved  us,  and  called  us  with  an 
holy  calling.”  From  whence  it  nny  be  as 
ftrongly  concluded,  that  falvation,  and  fo  j uni¬ 
fication,  is  before  vocation,  as  that  vocation  is 
before  juffification  from  the  other  text.  If, 
indeed,  by  jultification  is  meant  the  declarative 
fentence  of  it  upon  the  conlcience,  by  the  fpirit 
of  God,  and  received  by  faith  ;  ?twill  be  al¬ 
lowed,  that  it  follows  vocation,  and  that  voca¬ 
tion  precedes  it. 

5.  “  The  feveral  p:ffages  (a)  of  fcripture, 
where  we  are  faid  to  be  jultified  by,  or  through 
faith,  are  urged,  as  declaring  faith  to  be  a  pre- 
requifite  to  jollification  ;  which  cannot  be,  lay 
they,  if  jultification  was  from  eternity.”  To 
which  I  anfwer  :  That  thofe  places  of  fcripture, 
which  lpeak  of  juffification,  by,  or  through 
faith,  do  not  militate  againft,  nor  difprove  juf- 
tification  before  faith  :  For  though  juftifica- 
tion  before  faith,  and  by  faith  differ  ;  yet  they 
are  not  oppofite  and  contradiftory  :  Yea.  juf- 
tification  by,  or  through  faith,  fuppofes  jufti- 
fication  before  faith.  For  if  there  was  no  jufti- 
lication  before  faith,  there  can  be  none  by  it, 
without  making  faith  the  caufe  or  condition  of  it. 
As  to  thofe  places  of  fcripture,  which  fpeak  of 
juffification  by,  or  through  faith,  declaring 
faith  to  be  a  pre-requifite  to  juffification,  1 
H  reply  ; 

( a )  Nec  alio  tendunt  varia  ilia  loca,  ubi  dicimur 
ter  fidem,  Sc  fide  jultificari,  quam  lit  doceant  fidein 
:lTe  aliquid  ad  jultificationem  prasrequifitum  ;  quod 
dici  non  poteft,  li  juffificatio  ab  aeterno  fa£ht  fuilfet. 
Tiirretin,  fupra. 


5  8  The  DOCTRINE  of 

reply ;  If  by  a  pre-requifite,  is  meant  a  pre- 
requilite  to  the  being  of  juftification,  his  de 
nied  that  thofe  fcriptures  teach  any  fuch  thing; 
for  faith  adds  nothing  to  thebeingof  juftification  : 
But  if,  by  it,  is  meant  a  pre-requifite  to  the 
fenfe  and  knowledge  of  it,  or  to  a  claim  of  in- 
tereft  in  it,  it  will  be  allowed  to  be  the  fenfe  of 
them.  But  let  ns  a  little  confider  fome  of  the 
fcriptures  which  are  infilled  on.  Perhaps  the 
words  of  my  text,  may  be  thought  to  flare  me 
in  the  face,  and  to  furnifh  out  an  o'ojedlion 
again!!  juftification,  before  faith  ;  when  the 
apoftle  fays,  “  And  by  him  all  that  believe  are 
juftified.”  From  whence  it  can  only  be  inferred, 
that  all  that  believe  are juftified  perfons,  which 
no  body  denies ;  and  they  may  be  juftified  be¬ 
fore  thev  believe,  for  aught  that  the  apoftle  here 
fays.  And  if  any  one  fhould  think  fit  to  infer 
from  hence,  that  thofe  who  believe  not,  are 
not  juftified,  it  will  be  allowed,  that  they  are 
not  declaratively,  or  evidentially  juftified ,  that 
the}  do  not  know  that  they  are  ;  that  they  can- 
net  receive  any  comfort  from  it,  nor  claim  any 
interest  in  juftification  ;  but  that  they  are  not 
juftified  in  God’s  fight,  or  in  Chrift  the  Media¬ 
tor,  cannot  be  proved.  Again,  the  apoftle  in 
i  Cor.  vi.  ii.  fays  of  the  Corinthians,  that  they 
were  <£  now  juftified,”  as  if  they  were  not  juf¬ 
tified  before.  But  this,  I  conceive,  does  not  at  all 
militate  again!!  juftification  before  faith  :  For  they 
might  be  juftified  in  foro  Dei,  and  in  their  head, 
Chrift  |efus,  before  now;  andyet  not  till  noiv  be 
juftified  in  their  own  confidences  and  by  the  fpi- 
rit  of  God  :  which,  it  is  plain,  is  the  juftification 


JUSTIFICATION.  59 

;he  apoftle  is  here  fpeaking  of.  But  the  grand 
text  which  is  urged  to  prove  juftification  a  confe- 
quent  of  faith,  is  Gal  ii.  16.  ‘  Even  we  have  be¬ 
lieved  inJefusChrift,  that  we  might  be  juftified  by 
the  faith  of  Chrift.”  Here  the  apoftle  is  fpeaking 
of  juftification,  as  it  terminates  upon  the  con¬ 
fidence  of  a  believer  :  And  this  is  readily  grant¬ 
ed  to  follow  faith,  and  to  be  a  confequent  of 
it  ;  for  that  none  are  juftified  by  faith  until  they 
bel  eve,  is  acknowledged  by  all.  The  apoftie’s 
meaning  then  is,  that  we  have  believed  in  Chrift, 
or  have  looked  to  him  for  juftification,  that  we 
might  have  the  comfortable  fenfe  and  apprehen- 
fion  of  it,  through  faith  in  him  ;  or  that  we 
may  appear  to  be  juftified,  or  to  expect  juftifi¬ 
cation  alone  by  his  righteoufnefs,  received  by 
faith,  and  not  by  the  works  of  the  law.  In 
the  fame  light  may  many  other  feriptures,  of 
the  fame  kind,  be  confidered. 

6.  ’Tis  urged  (a)  :  “  That  juftification  can¬ 
not  be  from  eternity,  but  only  in  time,  when 
a  man  actually  believes  and  repents;  be<  aufe 
elfe  it  would  follow,  that  he,  who  is  juftified, 
and  confequently  has  palled  from  death  to  life, 
and  is  become  a  child  of  God,  and  an  heir  of 
eternal  life,  abides  ftill  in  death,  and  is  a  child 
of  wrath  ;  becaufe  he  who  is  not  converted, 
and  lies  in  fin,  abides  in  death,  1  John  iii.  14. 
and  is  of  the  devil,  1  John  iii.  8.  and  in  a  ftate 
of  damnation,  Gal.  v.  21. ”  In  order  to  folve 
this  feeming  difficulty,  let  it  be  obferved,  That 
God’s  eleft  may  be  confidered  under  two  dif¬ 
ferent  heads ,  and  as  related  to  two  different; 

covenant? 


la)  Turret  in.  ibid,  §  5. 


oo 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


covenants  at  one  and  the  fame  time.  As  they 
are  the  defendants  of  Adam ,  they  are  related 
to  him,  as  a  covenant  head,  and,  as  fuch,  linned 
in  him ;  and,  through  his  offence,  judgment 
came  upon  them  all  to  condemnation  ;  and  fo 
they  are  all,  by  nature,  children  of  wrath, 
even  as  others.  But  then,  as  coufidered  in 
Chrift,  they  were  loved  with  an  everlafting 
love  ;  God  chofe  them  in  him  before  the  foun¬ 
dation  of  the  world  ;  and  always  viewed  and 
accounted  them  righteous  in  Chrift,  in  whom 
they  were  eternally  fecured  from  everlafting 
wrath  and  damnation.  So  that  it  is  no  contra¬ 
dict. on  to  fay,  that  the  eleCt  of  God,  as  they 
are  in  Adam,  and  according  to  the  covenant  of 
works,  are  under  the  fentence  of  condemna¬ 
tion  ;  and  that  as  they  are  in  Chrift,  and  ac¬ 
cording  to  the  covenant  of  grace,  and  the 
fecret  tranfaCtions  thereof,  they  are  jollified 
and  freed  from  all  condemnation.  This  is  no 
store  a  contradiction,  than  that  they  are  loved 
with  «n  everlafting  love,  and  yet  are  children 
of  wrath  at  one  and  the  fame  time,  as  they  cer¬ 
tainly  are.  And  again,  this  is  no  more  a  con¬ 
tradiction,  than  that  Jefus  Chrift  was  the  objeCt 
of  hi'  Father’s  love  and  wrath  at  one  and  the 
fame  time  ;  fuftaining  two  different  capacities, 
and  {landing  in  two  d  fferent relations,  whenhe 
fuffered  in  the  room  and  (lead  of  his  people. 

7.  ’Tis  objected  :  That  this  doCtrine  makes 
affurance  to  be  of  the  effence  of  faith.  And, 
indeed,  I  think,  that  affurance,  in  fome  degree 
or  other  of  it,  is  effential  to  faith  :  But  then 
by  this  I  don’t  mean  fnch  an  affurance  as  ex¬ 
cludes  ■ 


6i 


JUSTIFICATION. 

duties  all  doubts  and  fears,  and  admits  of  no 
allay  of  unbelief;  which  the  apoftle  calls  (a), 
il  The  full  affurance  of  faith,”  and  is  the  high  eft 
degree  thereof.  Nor  do  1  intend  affurance  in 
fo  low  a  fenfe,  as  the  mere  affurance  of  the 
objed ;  for  this  may  be  in  devils,  in  hypocrites, 
and  formal  profeffors  :  But  I  mean  an  affurance 
of  the  objeft  with  relation  to  a  man’s  felf  in 
particular.  As  for  inflance :  That  faith  by 
which  a  man  is  faid  to  be  juftified,  ic  rot  a  mere 
affurance  of  the  object,  or  a  bare  perfuafior  that 
there  is  a  juftifying  righteouinefs  in  Chr  ft  ;  but 
that  there  is  a  juftifying  righteoufnefs  in  Chrift 
for  him ;  and  therefore  he  looks  unto,  leans, 
relies,  and  depends  on,  and  pleads  this  righte¬ 
oufnefs  for  his  juftification  :  Tho’  this  adl  of  his 
may  be  attended  with  many  doubts,  fears,  quef- 
tionings  and  unbelief.  And  what  is  fliort  of 
this,  I  cannot  apprehend  to  be  true  faith  in 
Chrift.  as  the  Lord  our  righteoufnefs. 

8.  It  is  objected  :  That  if  juftification  is  be¬ 
fore  faith,  then  there  is  no  reed  of  faith  ;  it  is 
a  vain  and  ufelefs  thing.  To  which  I  anfwer, 
That  though  faith  does  not  juftify  us,  it  being 
neither  the  whole,  nor  a  part  of  our  juftifying 
righteoufnefs,  nor  the  caufe  or  condition  of  our 
juftidcation  ;  yet,  as  it  apprehends  and  receives 
Chrift’s  righteoufnefs  for  our  juftification,  it 
brings  much  peace,  joy,  and  comfort  into  our 
heaits.  The  awakened  {inner,  before  faith  is 
wrought  in  his  foul,  <  r  he  enabled  to  exercife  it 
on  Chrift,  finds  hmifelf  in  a  ftate  of  bondage, 
and  under  a  fentence  of  condemnation  ;  as  he 

really 

(a)  Heb.  x.  22. 


6i 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


really  is,  as  a  defcendant  of'  Adam,  and  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  open  rules  of  God’s  word  :  So  that 
there  is  nothing  elle  but  a  fearful  expectation  of 
fiery  indignation  to  confume  him.  But  when  the 
fpiric  of  God  brings  near  Chrift’s  righteoufnefs, 
and  puts  it  into  the  hand  of  faith,  and  declares 
the  juftifying  fentence  of  God,  upon  the  account 
of  that  righteoufnefs,  in  the  confcience,  his 
mind  is  unfetter’d,  his  foul  is  fet  at  liberty,  and 
is  filled  with  “  a  joy  unfpeakable,  and  full  of 
gloiy.”  So  that  faith  is  juft  of  the  fame  ule- 
fulnefs  in  this  refpeCt,  as  a  condemned  malefac¬ 
tor’s  aC!ually  receiving  the  king’s  pardon  into 
his  own  hand  is  to  him  ;  when,  in  confequence 
of  this,  he’s  not  only  delivered  from  prifon  and 
confinement,  and  all  the  miferies  which  attend 
fuch  a  ftate  ;  but  alfo  freed  from  all  thofe  fears, 
terrors,  horrors,  and  tortures  of  mind,  which 
arofe  fiom  his  daily  expectation  of  juft  punilh- 
ment.  In  fine,  juftification  is  by  faith,  and  in  a 
way  of  receiving,  as  the  whole  of  falvation  is, 
(i  That  it  might  be  by  grace,”  i.  e.  that  it 
might  appear  to  be  of  grace,  and  not  of  work'. 
Thus  have  I  freely  given  my  thoughts  concern¬ 
ing  juftification,  both  before  and  at  believing, 
and  have  endeavoured  to  remove  the  objections 
made  againft  it.  I  leave  what  I  have  faid  to  the 
hlelliiig  of  God,  and  pafs  onJJ 

VI.  To  confider  the  objeCts  of  juftification, 
who  are  God’s  (a)  eleCt:  “  Who  lhall  lay  any 
thing  to  the  charge  of  God’s  eleCt?  it  is  God 
that  juftifies,”  i.  e.  his  eleCt;  who  are  de- 
fcribed, 

i . 

(a)  Rom.  via.  33,  34. 


JUSTIFICATION.  63 

1.  By  their  number :  They  are  many  :  <e  Bv 
his  knowledge  (a)  ihall  my  righteous  fervant 
juftify  many."  And,  “  by  the  obedience  of 
one  Cb),  many  are  made  righteous."  Jefus 
Chrift  engaged  as  a  furety  for  many,  and  “  gave 
his  life  a  ranfom  for  many  (r),’’  and  “  was 
offered  up  to  bear  the  fins  of  many;  which  is 
the  true  reafon  why  many  are  juftified  by  him. 
Many  are  brought  to  believe  on  him  for  life 
and  fnlvation,  even  “  as  many  (d)  as  were  or¬ 
dained  to  eternal  life  and  many  Tons,  in  con- 
fequence  of  all  this,  will  be  brought  to  glory  : 
<c  Many  flia'd  fit  down  with  Abraham,  Ifaac, 
and  Jacob ,  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  (e).” 
And  hence  there  “  are  many  manfions  in  Chrift’s 
Father’s  houfe’’  preparing  for  them.  This 
leads  us  to  obferve, 

(1.)  That  they  are  not  a  few  who  are  jolli¬ 
fied  by  Chrift.  Though  Chrift’s  flock  is  but  a 
little  flock,  in  companion  of  the  world’s  goats  • 
though  Chrift’s  people  are  but  few,  in  compa¬ 
nion  of  the  vaft  number  of  hypocrites,  and  for¬ 
mal  profeffors  ;  (for  “  many  are  called,  but  few 
chofen  (f)  (S  many  llrive  to  enter  in  at  the 
ftrait  gate,  but  few  there  be  that  enter  in  at  it 
yet,  confidered  in  themfelv.es,  they  are  a  great 
number,  which  no  man  can  number.  Now 
this  ferves  to  magnify  the  grace  of  God,  to 
exalt  the  fatbfadtion  and  righteoufnefs  of  the 
Lord  Jefus  Chrift,  and  to  encourage  diftreffed 

fouls 

(a)  Ifai.  liii.  ir.  (b)  Rom.  v.  19.  (c)  Mitt, 

xx.  28.  Heb.  ix.  28-  (cl)  A£ts  xiii.  48.  ( e )  Matt, 

viii.  12.  John  xiv.  2.  (/)  Matt.  xx.  16.  Luke 

xiii.  24. 


o4 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


fouls  to  fetk  and  look  to  Chrift  for  righteouf- 
nefs  ;  feeing  <t  is  wrought  out  for  many,  and 
many  are  juftified  by  it.  “  Bleffed  («)  are  they 
that  hunger  and  third:  after  righteoulhefs,  they 
fhall  be  filled. ” 

(?.)  This  ihews  that  all  mankind  are  not  juf- 
tified.  Though  thcv  are  many  who  are  jufti¬ 
fied,  yet  they  are  not  all.  f  or  all  men  have  not 
faith  to  receiyp  Chrift’s  righteoufnefs ;  nor  are 
all  men  faved  as  they  would  be,  if  they  were 
juftified  :  For  thofe  who  “  are  juftified  ( b )  by 
his  blood,  thall  be  faved  from  wrath  through 
him.”  Yet  all  the  ele&  are  juftified  :  For  “in 
him  (c)  lhall  all  the  feed  ol  ljrocl  be  juftified, 
and  lhail  glory.” 

2.  The  objetfts  of  juftification  are  defcribed 
by  the  quality  of  them,  or  by  their  flute  and 
condition.  Before  converfion,  they  are  repre- 
fented  as  ungodly  ;  and  alter  converiion,  as 
believers  in  Chrift.  Thus,  in  oui  text:  “  All 
that  believe  are  juftified.”  By  whom  we  are  to 
underftand,  not  nominal  believers,  orfuchwho 
only  profefs  to  believe  in  Chrift;  but  real  ones, 
who  with  the  heart  believe  unto  righteoufnefs, 
and  whofe  faith  works  by  love  to  Chrift  and  to 
his  p  ople.  But  I  goon, 

VII.  to  mention  the  feveral  effefts  of  jufti¬ 
fication,  which  are  thefe  following. 

i.  A  freedom  from  all  penal  evils  in  this  life, 
and  that  wh:ch  is  to  come.  A  juftified  perlon 
fhall  never  enter  into  condemnation  :  his  afflic¬ 
tions  in  this  life  are  not,  ftriftly  fpeaking, 
puniflunents  for  fin,  but  latheidy  chaftifements. 

They 

(«)  Matt.  v.  6,  ( b )  Rom.  v.  9.  (c)  Ifai.  xlv.  25. 


JUSTIFICATION.  65 

They  are  not  inflidted  in  a  way  of  vindictive 
wrath,  or  that  by  bearing  them  they  fhould 
make  fatisfadtion  for  their  fins ;  for  this  wou.d 
highly  refledt  on  the  j allice  of  God,  be  a  leffen- 
ing  of  the  fatisfadlion  of  Chrilt,  and  contrary 
to  the  whole  gofpel  declaration. 

2.  Peace  with  God  is  another  confequent  or 
effect  of  jultification  :  “  Being  (a)  juftified  by 
faith,  we  have  peace  with  God,”  i.  e.  peace  of 
confcience,  which  palfeth  all  underltanding, 
and  is  one  of  the  molt  valuable  bleflings  of  life. 

3.  Accel’s  to  God  through  Chrilt  with  confi¬ 
dence,  is  another  effedt  of  it.  A  juftified  per- 
fon  can  go  to  God,  in  the  name  and  ftrength 
of  Chrilt,  with  much  boldnefs,  malting  mention 
of  his  righteoufne  fs,  and  of  his  only  ;  and 
ufe  much  freedom  at  the  throne  of  grace,  in 
alking  for  fuch  things  as  he  Hands  in  need  of. 

4.  Acceptance  of  perfon  and  fervice  with 
God,  through  Chrilt,  follows  upon  our  jultifi- 

-cation.  God  is  well  pleafed  with  his  righteouf- 
nefs,  and,  for  the  fake  of  it,  with  all  his  people. 
Their  perfons  are  accepted  in  the  beloved,  and 
their  facrifices  and  fervices  are  alfo  acceptable  to 
God,  through  Jefus  Chrilt  our  Lord. 

5.  Adoption  is  another  confequent  of  j unifi¬ 
cation  :  For  though  this  blelfing  was  originally 
provided,  bellowed,  and  fecured  in  predeltina- 
tion  ;  yet  way  is  made  for  our  adtual  reception 
of  it,  by  our  redemption,  which  is  in  Chrilt  Jefus ; 
who  hath  redeemed  <c  them  that  were  under 
the  ( b )  law,  that  we  might  receive  the  adop- 

I  tion 


(«)  Rom.  v.  1. 


(b)  Gal,  iv.  5. 


66 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


tion  of  children.”  Hence  Junius  calls  juftifi- 
cation  via  adoptionis,  the  way  to  adoption. 

/  6.  Sanctification  is  alfo  an  effeCt  of  juftifica- 
tion  :  Faith,  as  has  been  already  fhewn,  fol¬ 
lows  upon  it,  and  is  a  very  confulerable  part  of 
fan&ificationT)  In  fine,  certainty  of  falvation, 
which  may  be  ftrongly  concluded  from  our  jufti- 
fication,  and  an  undoubted  title  to  the  glorious 
inheritance  ;  yea,  the  full  pofTeflion  of  it  arife 
from  it,  and  depend  upon  it :  For  “  whom  he  (a) 
juftified,  them  he  alfo  glorified.”  But  I  pro- 
pofed  only  to  mention  thefe  things,  and  there¬ 
fore  proceed  to  the 

Vlil.  And  laft  thing,  which  is  to  confider 
the  feveral  properties  of  juftification. 

1.  It  is  an  aCf  of  God’s  free  grace  :  “  Being 
( bj  juftified  freely  by  his  grace.”  ’Twas  grace 
that  refolved  on,  and  fixed  the  fcheme  and  me¬ 
thod  of  juftification;  and  which  called  and 
moved  Chrift:  to  engage  as  a  furety  for  his 
people  ;  and  which  fent  him,  in  the  fulnefs  of 
time,  to  work  out  a  righteoufnefs  for  them. 
And  then  ’twas  grace  in  God  to  accept  of  this 
righteoufnefs  for  them,  and  to  impute  it  to  them, 
and  beftow  faith  on  them  to  receive  it  ;  efpe-  ! 
cialiy  will  all  this  appear  to  be  free  grace,  when  j 
’tis  confidered  that  thefe  perfons  are  all  by 
nature  llnners,  and  ungodly  ones  ;  yea,  many 
of  them  the  chief  of  ftnners. 

2.  It  is  univerfal  and  not  partial.  All  God’s 
eledt  are  juftified,  and  that  from  all  things,  as 
in  our  text,  i.  e.  from  all  their  fins,  and  are 
freed  from  all  that  punifhment  which  is  due  unto 

them 

(, b )  Rom.  iii.  24- 


(a)  Rom.  via.  30. 


JUSTIFICATION.  67 

them.  The  whole  riglueoufnefs  of  Chrift  is 
imputed  to  them  :  by  being  hereby  juftified, 
they  are  perfect  and  compleat  in  him. 

£3.  It  is  an  individual  aft,  which  is  done  at 
once,  and  admits  of  no  degrees.  The  fins  of 
God’s  eleft  were  laid  at  once  on  Chrift,  and  he 
made  fatisfaftion  for  them  at  once.  God  ac¬ 
cepted  of  Chrift’s  riglueoufnefs,  and  imputed 
it  at  once  unto  his  people,  who  all  have  their 
fins  and  tranfgrefiions  forgiven  at  once.  The 
fenfe  of  juftification,  indeed,  admits  of  degrees ; 
for  “  the  righteoul'nefs  (a)  of  God  is  revealed 
from  faith  to  faith  but  juftification  itfelf  does 
not.  There  are  feveral  freih  declarations,  or 
manifeftations,  or  repetitions  of  the  aft  of  juf¬ 
tification  ;  as  at  the  refurreftion  of  Chrift ;  and 
again,  by  the  teftimony  of  the  fpirit  to  the  con¬ 
fidence  of  the  believer  ;  and  laft  of  all,  at  the 
general  judgment,  before  men  and  angels.  But 
juftification,  as  it  is  an  aft  in  God,  is  but  one, 
and  is  done  at  once,  and  admits  of  no  degrees  j 
and  is  not  carried  on  in  a  gradual  and  progref- 
five  way,  as  fanftification  isd) 

4.  It  is  equal  to  all,  or  all  are  alike  juftified. 
The  fame  price  was  paid  for  the  redemption  of 
one,  as  for  another  ;  and  the  fame  righteouf- 
nefs  is  imputed  to  one,  as  to  another  ;  and, 
like  precious  faith,  is  given  to  one,  as  to  another  ; 
though  not  to  all  in  the  fame  degree,  yet  the 
weakeft  believer  is  as  much  juftified  as  the 
ftrongeft,  and  the  greateft  finnev  as  the  fmalleft. 
Though  one  man  may  have  more  fanftifying 

grace 


{ a )  Rom.  i.  if. 


68 


The  DOCTRINE  of 


grace  than  another,  yet  no  man  has  more  jufti* 
jying  righteoufnef;-  than  another. 

5.  It  is  irreverfible  and  unalterable.  ’Tis 
according  to  an  immutable  decree,  which  can 
never  be  fruftrated.  It  is  one  of  God’s  gifts, 
which  are  without  repentance  :  It  is  one  of  the 
bleffi-ngs  of  the  covenant  of  grace,  which  can 
never  be  broken.  The  righteoufnefs  by  which 
the  faints  are  juftified  is  an  everlafting  one  ;  and 
that  faith,  by  which  they  receive  it,  lhall  never 
fail  :  And  though  a  righteous  man  may  fall  into 
fin,  yet  he  lhall  never  fall  from  his  righteouf¬ 
nefs,  nor  lhall  he  ever  enter  into  condemnation, 
but  be  eternally  glorified. 

6.  Juftification,  though  it  frees  perfons  from 
fin,  and  diicharges  them  from  punilhment  due 
unto  it,  yet  it  does  not  take  fin  out  of  them. 
By  it,  indeed,  they  are  freed  from  fin,  info- 
much,  that  God  fees  no  iniquity  in  them  to 
condemn  them  for  it.  Though  he  fees  and  be¬ 
holds  all  the  fins  of  his  people,  in  articulo  pro¬ 
vidently ,  in  refpeft  of  providence,  and  chaftifes 
them  for  ’em  ;  yet  in  articulo  jujtificationis,  in 
refpeft  of  juftification,  he  fees  none  in  them  ; 
they  being  acquitted,  difcharged,  and  juffified 
from  all.  Neverthelefs  fin  dwells  in  them  : 
“  For  (a)  there  is  not  a  juft  man  upon  earth 
that  liveth  and  fmneth  not.” 

7.  It  does  not  deftroy  the  law,  nor  difcourage 
a  careful  performance  of  good  works.  It  does 
not  deftroy  the  law,  or  make  it  void  ;  no,  it 
eftablifhes  it  ;  for  the  righteoufnefs  by  which 
we  are  juftified,  is  every  way  cominenfurate  to 

the 


{a)  Ecclef.  vii.  20. 


JUSTIFICATION.  69 

the  demands  of  the  law;  by  it  the  law  is 
magnified  and  made  honorable.  Nor  are  per- 
fons,  by  this  do&rine,  difcouraged  from  the 
performance  of  good  works  ;  for  this  dofrrine 
of  grace  teaches  men,  “  That  denying  (aj 
ungodlinefs,  and  wordly  lulls,  they  Ihould  live 
foberlv,  righteoully,  and  godly,  in  this  prefent 
world.”  To  conclude  :  If  your  fouls  are  under 
the  powerful  and  comfortable  influence  of  this 
do&rine,  you  will,  in  the  firft  place,  blefs  God 
for  Jefus  Chrill,  by  whofe  obedience  you  are 
made  righteous  :  You  will  value  his  juftifying 
righteoufnefs,  and  make  mention  of  it  at  all 
proper  times :  you  will  glory  alone  in  Chrill, 
and  will  give  the  whole  glory  of  your  jultifica- 
tion  to  him  ;  and  will  be  earnellly  and  lludioufly 
defirous  of  having  your  converfations  as  become 
the  gofpel  of  Chrill,  and  this  truth  of  it  in 
particular. 

(a)  Tit.  ii.  n,  12. 


FINIS. 


A  POEM, 

IN  REPLY  TO  THE 


Reverend  Mr.  WESLE  Y’s 


POETICAL  PERFORMANCE, 

FALSELY  CALLED, 


<SC 


An  Answer  to  all  which  the  Rev.  Dr.  Gill 
has  printed  on  the  Final  Perfeverance  of  the 


Saints.” 


*  J 


c V 
u  OtUkC  f 


rear. 


What  fhall  one  then  anfwer  to  the  Mtffengers  of 
the  Nation  P  That  the  Lord  hath  founded  Zion , 
and  the  poor  of  the  people  fhall  truji  in  it « 
Ifa.  xiv.  32. 

This  people  have  I  formed  for  myfelf}  they  fhall 
fhew  forth  my  praife,  xliii.  21. 


LONDON,  Printed : 

Charleston,  Re-Printed  by  Markland  6*  MlIver < 
MDCCXCII. 


ADVERTISEMENT. 
HEREAS,  this  poem  was  made  in  defence 


of  fome  of  Dodlor  Gill’s  writings,  I  thought 
proper  to  favour  the  public  with  it  once  more,  by 
having  it  re-printed  in  the  end  of  this  extradl. 
And  as  it  was  written  by  an  anonymous  author ,  I 
have  ventured  to  make  fome  fmall  alterations  in  it  ; 
whether  they  be  amendments,  l  fhull  leave  to  the 
judgment  of  the  reader.  And  notwithstanding 
there  are  fome  expreffions  in  it  rather  tart,  I  hope 
they  will  not  hinder  truth  from  having  its  dejired 


effedl. 


It  is  therefore  recommended  to  the ferious  conf. 


deration  of  the  candid  reader ,  by  his  unworthy 
fe;  van'  in  the  gofpel  of  Christ , 


SILAS  MERCER. 


A  P  O  E  M, 

IN  REPLY  TO  THE 

R.everend  Mr.  WESLEY’s,  &rc. 

rAS  ever  fuch  an  empty  anfwer  feen, 

So  weak,  Jo  wicked,  foreign,  falfe  and 
mean  ? 

The  author  only  beats  the  air  in  vain, 

And  aims  at  fomething  which  he  can’t  explain. 

I  judge  the  whole  this  mighty  piece  affords, 

Is  fpite,  and  pride,  and  heav'n  daring  words  5 
Pleas’d  with  perverting  facred  writ,  to  fliow 
Sal  vation’s  not  of  grace  but  what  we  do. 
He’d  have  us  think  it  comes  moll  richly  fraught, 
In  anfwer  to  what  Dr.  Gill  has  wrote  : 

Thanks  to  the  tide,  or  ’tis  underhood 
As  well  of  Little  John  and  Robin  Hood. 

Dodlor,  no  need  to  turn  thofe  darts  afide, 
They  either  die  in  air,  or  fly  full  wide  ; 

Truth  hands  unfit aken,  all  this  babble’s  vain, 
While  Sion’s  king,  will  Sion’s  caufe  maintain  ; 
He  chofe  her  for  himfelf,  his  dwelling's  there, 
And  can’t  forget  the  children  his  care. 

Wefley,  if  thy  fallacious  fcheme  prevail, 
ifdom  muh  err,  and  mightv  pow’r  may  fail  : 
jrace  may  deceive  the  perfon  where  ’tis  wrought 
And  all  that  God  hath  faid  may  hand  for  nought ; 
If  there’s  a  breach  in  tverlahing  love. 

Then  faith  is  vain ,  nor  are  they  fafe  above. 
This  truth  fhou'd  never,  never  be  forgot, 

That  Jacob’s  God’s  a  God  that  changes  not. 
You  once  believ’d,  you  fay,  where  you  begin, 
That  heaven  is  bought  for  thofe  who  leave  their 
fin  1 

K  If 


73 


A  P  O  E  M. 


x 

If  your  foundation  cannot  fland  the  teft, 
There’s  room  to  doubt  the  rruth  of  all  the  reft  \ 
How  heav’n  is  purchas’d  you  fhould  firft  explain, 
Then,  by  what  pow’r  vile  men  from  fin  refrain  ; 
The  Saviour  died  his  blood  for  fin,  not  heav’n, 
To  purchafe  perfons,  not  for  bleffings  giv’n  ; 
Where  fatisfaClion>  s  rightly  underftood, 

Perfons ,  rot  things,  mull  bear  the  price  of  blood, 
And  all  thofe  bleffings  added,  can’t  but  be 
The  unfeign’d  gift  of  the  eternal  Three. 

Is  nothing  certain  till  I  leave  my  fin  ? 

Will  God  not  love  me  till  I  firfl  begin  ? 

And  will  that  love  decline  as  mine  grows  cold  ? 
Or  can  he  hate  me  young,  and  love  me  old  ? 
Does  man’s  obedience  happinefs  obtain  ? 

Then  all’s  of  debt,  and  Chrift  has  died  in  vain, 
Then  Saviour,  furely,  helper,  facrifice. 

Are  empty  founds  and  mere  abfurdities. 

Is  this  glad  tidings?  Where  can  I  depend? 

If  Ch  ist  be  wanting,  where  have  I  a  friend  ? 
Sir,  I  fuppofe  your  meaning  fhould  be  this  ; 

To  part  with  fin  is  not  to  do  amifs  : 

Then  why  this  confidence,  this  fpite  and  pr  ide, 
Thofe  many  facred  texts  thus  villify’d  ? 

And  why  this  devil,  with  a  fnare,  to  fay, 

Who  wrongs  my  child,  who  takes  its  bread  away  ? 
Boaft  not  perfection,  fince  the  cafe  be  thus, 
Except  ’tis  perfect  blind,  or  fomething  worfe. 
But,  O  !  how  impious,  how  profoundly  bafe  ! 
To  talk  of  fin  in  confequence  of  grace  ! 

That  thofe  who  live  by  faith,  may  as  they  pleafe, 
Trample  on  love  and  live  in  carnal  eafe  ; 

As  tho’  the  grace  of  God  does  not  conftrain 
The  hearts  of  thofe  belev’d,  to  love  again. 

This 


A 


POEM. 


74 

This  is  the  dotdrine  which  the  tempter  brought ; 
Read  and  confider,  tremble  at  the  thought  ! 

‘  If  thou’rt  the  fon  of  God,  then  fear  no  ill, 

<c  What  he  has  faid,  he  furely  will  fulfill ; 

“  He’s  bid  his  angels  watch  and  guard  thee  round, 
“  Negledt  all  rules,  go  headlong  to  the  ground.” 
The  ways  of  God  he  never  once  put  in  ; 

Here  read  yourfelf,  “  the  foul  that’s  fafe  may  fin;” 
Choofe  to  be  holy  you  would  fet  afide  ; 

Thus  he  attack’d  the  bridegroom,  you  the  bride* 
O  !  black  ingratitude  from  hell  below  ! 

The  grateful  Chridian  cannot  argue  fo. 

What,  if  my  prince  fhould  kindly  condefcend 
To  let  me  know  he’s  always  been  my  friend  ; 
Paid  of  the  many  fcores  that  I  fhould  pay. 

And  fends  me  frelh  provilion,  day  by  day  ; 

Can  I  from  hence  fuch  vile  conclufions  draw. 
To  hate  his  love,  and  fet  at  naught  his  law  : 
No,  rather  fay,  ’twould  make  mefpeak  his  praife. 
And  drive  to  ferve  him  my  remaining  days. 

That  foul  that’s  humbled  with  a  fenfe  of  fin, 
And  feels,  and  loaths  its  rottennefs  within  ; 
That  knows  its  helplels  cafe,  and  does  confefs. 
He’s  nothiug  of  his  own  but  emptinefs  ; 

And  by  divine  alfidance  can  behold, 

More  worth  in  Christ  than  pyramids  of  gold  ; 
Tho’  fin  and  Satan  often  make  him  doubt, 

This  bruifed  reed  lhall  hand  the  temped  out  : 

A  glimpfe  of  love  lhall  cheer  him  on  the  way, 
And  drength  be  given  equal  to  his  day. 

It  in  the  gloomy  pit  where  horrors  dwell, 

And  he  concludes  himfelf  next  door  to  hell. 

His  God  lhall  pleafant  paths  to  him  redore. 

And  make  him  fing  a  fong  unknown  before. 

That 


75 


A 


POEM. 


That  mighty  arm  that  calm’d  the  raging  fea, 
Shall  guard  hipi  round,  and  guide  him  on  his  way. 
Thus,  thus  the  chriftian  man  is  tofs’d  about  ; 
Sometimes  his  faith  prevails,  and  fometimes 
doubt ; 

Though  various  changes  may  attend  his  frame, 
His  state  lhall  ever  more  abide  the  fame. 

When  in  God’s  light  his  faintscan  eye  the  chain, 
And  can  the  order  of  each  link  explain, 

From  his  foreknowledge  down  through  time,  and 
then, 

Afcending  up  to  Deity  again  : 

Each  attribute  concurs  to  make  them  blefs’d, 
Sav’d  to  be  call’d,  and  rail’d  to  endlefs  reft. 
They  with  feraphic  views  mav  fweetly  trace 
The  glories, heights  and  depths  of  mighty  grace  ; 
And  lee  what  was  laid  up  in  Christ  their  head, 

In  Adam  was  not  loft  nor  forfeited  ; 

And  while  they  lay  all  ruin’d  in  the  fall, 

Eternal  arms  wet  e  underneath  them  all ; 

They  being  objetfts  of  that  ancient  love, 

Their  fall  in  Adam  could  not  that  remove  : 

And  as  th’effetft  of  union  to  their  Lord, 

He  bids  them  live,  and  they  obey  his  word  : 

'I  hey  fee  as  Adam  funk  them  into  fin, 

The  life  and  death  of  Chrilt  has  made  them  clean. 
And  how  fecure  they  flood  e’er  time  begun, 

And  how  eternal  fettlements  do  run. 

,  If  they  be  children,  they  are  heirs  of  aft. 

From  him  they  did  not,  will  not,  cannot  fall. 
As  by  adoption  they  have  this  relation, 

Tlte  nature’s  giv’n  in  regeneration  ; 

As  by  the  firft  they’re  fons  to  the  creator, 

The  latter  as  th’effefl  gives  children’s  nature. 

Here 


A  P  O  E  M. 


76 


Here  they  mayftand  and  wonder,  and  adore, 
How  God  could  love  them  welt’ring  in  their 
gore. 

When  by  the  Holy  Spirit  they  are  lead. 

To  read  their  int’reft  in  a  rifen  head  ; 

What  glaring  glory  ramifies  their  eyes, 

In  every  providence  new  wonders  rife; 

If  they’re  furrounded  with  afflictions  here, 

Or  bread  and  water  be  their  only  cheer, 

Each  needful  want  he'll  readily  fupply, 

Whole  ear  is  open  to  the  raven’s  cry  ; 

He  fends  them  earthly,  fends  them  heav’nly 
food, 

And  makes  each  crooked  thing  to  work  for  good. 
When  they’re  tranfplanted  to  the  realms  above. 
What  views  they’ll  have  of  everlafting  love  ; 
They’ll  put  perfection  on,  and  plainly  lee, 

What  was  the  bufinefs  of  eternity. 

And  fing  the  great  contrivance  of  the  bound- 
lefs  three. 

Welley,  no  more  advance  this  wretched  fchcme, 
Nor  plume  thyfelf  by  robbing  the  iupreme  ; 

No  more  exalt  proud  man  at  the  expence 
Of  God’s  foreknowledge  and  omnipotence. 

Sir,  in  your  next,  will  you  vouchfafe  to  Ihow, 
Who  leads  and  teaches  Ephraim  to  go  ? 

Who  brings  to  Zion  with  a  tender  care, 

And  keep'  the  wheels  of  love  in  motion  there. 
And  makes  him  joyful  in  the  houfe  of  pray’r  ? 
Who  often  puts  to  flight  contending  foes  ?’ 

Who  flays  the  rough  wind  when  the  eafl  wind 
blows  ? 

Who  makes  him  oft  rejoice  in  tabulation. 

And  hope  and  truft  alone  in  God’s  falvation  ? 

Would 


1 


77  A  P  O  E  M. 

Would  God  beftow  on  you  his  quickening 
rays. 

You’d  own  his  pow’r  and  fing  aloud  his  praife  ; 
To  moles  and  bats  you’d  call:  your  idols  then, 
And  give  to  God,  what  now  you  give  to  men. 


FINIS. 


b.  A 


